Citing unnamed sources, the Financial Times reported Thursday that Deripaska, Russia's richest man, will be the first recipient of a $10 billion government bailout package for the nation's oligarchs.
Mikhail Fridman's Alfa Group is also expected to be among the first beneficiaries, after failing to meet margin calls last week on $2 billion in loans from a group of Western banks led by Deutsche Bank AG.
"Our supervisory board approved a decision on a range of borrowers whose debts must be refinanced," Vnesheconombank, or VEB, chief Vladimir Dmitriyev told Vesti-24 television station. "These are first-class borrowers that, because of the unfavorable situation on world markets, face the threat of losing their assets."
For Rusal, the lifeline from VEB would buy it extra time to repay a syndicate of banks, including Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc and Merrill Lynch & Co. - Renee Cordes
