Читать книгу Tough Business - Владимир Баранчиков - Страница 5

The financial association «Holding» is a powerful business structure on the St. Petersburg scale. In 1993, it consisted of several foreign trade firms, trading companies with shops, as well as traditional services, which I mentioned earlier, a legal department, had its own travel and insurance companies. The investments were handled by Holding-Invest, considerable funds were invested in the business center at the Nevsky Palace Hotel together with American businessmen Paul Tatum and his partner Richard Monroe. I had the good fortune to communicate with Mr. Monroe personally, we were driving in his car on business somehow, and he praised my English pronunciation (apparently, he was tired of listening to self-taught people). A typical gentleman and a classic scout – a solid attractive image, soft manners, a calm voice, an attentive look. Who has never heard of Paul Tatum, I will briefly say – one of the first American businessmen in Russia, large interests in Moscow at the Slavyanskaya Hotel, connections at the mayor’s office, joint business with the famous Chechen businessman Umar Dzhabrailov. According to authoritative sources, in 1991, at a critical moment of the confrontation, namely Paul Tatum provided Boris Yeltsin’ telephone communication with the military units of General Grachev and Lebed, which greatly contributed to his victory over the GKCHP. Mr. Tatum was killed in the center of Moscow in a pedestrian crossing by a burst from a machine gun in 1996. Tough Business… The US State Department sent a note to the Russian government and demanded to find and punish the perpetrators. They didn’t find it.

The second interesting project was the joint venture AmRus Communications. The director of the company was Oleg Borisovich, he is also the vice president of the Holding. The company borrowed and introduced advanced American development in Russia – equipment for signal consolidation of telephone lines and communication channels, as well as household antennas for receiving television channels. I had a chance to take part in this direction with the specialists of the Bonch-Bruevich Institute of Communications. A professor from institute asked me a question:

– Why do I find a common language with you, but not with your supervisor?

The unvoiced answer was that, although I have three higher educations, one of which I received in the building next to you on the Moika Embankment, opposite the Stroganov Palace, but in the new conditions, money decides everything. And you, comrade Professor, will do what is required of you, and if they want, they will buy your knowledge inexpensively. As well as mine, as, in fact, and me.

I will introduce the heads of the association: Khalid headed Holding-Invest, Oleg – foreign trade and his beloved AmRus, Amir – Vice President for Trade Operations. The holding is headed by Khazir Daudovich, President. In the middle of 1993, the authorized capital of the Holding was one billion rubles. Most divisions had their own Lada cars with drivers, and the vice-president and the president himself drove new Ford Torus cars bought in the USA in the amount of as many as seventeen pieces. Three cars were left in St. Petersburg, the rest were sent on their own to the Caucasus. It was said that at the last checkpoint in front of the Chechen Republic, this cavalcade was stopped by a police colonel of the traffic police. But then our Felix Andreevich, a retired captain of the first rank, a counterintelligence officer, came out to him and solved the issue – the caravan moved on. I have already written about the relationship with the Central Research Institute «Rumb» – after all, we ourselves were sitting there on the fourth floor. These were our opportunities, but they were not exhausted by this.

The financial association needed financial freedom, and it was realized in the establishment of the bank Tavrichesky together with Mr. Zakharzhevsky. Khazir Daudovich took the post of vice-president of the bank Tavrichesky. I remember, in May of ’93, we inspected the building of the future bank being repaired on Radishcheva Street together with a beautiful Scandinavian-type Marina Lavrinets, whom I invited from the Peleng company directly into the caring hands of Vsevolod Valentinovich. He was experiencing a shortage of personnel, and I was obliged to him… Marina had a fascinating effect on men from fifteen to seventy years old inclusive, a natural blonde with huge gray eyes and a dazzling smile. Besides, she was the person I could trust – I didn’t have any friends in the Holding. It’s not surprising that the next day after the interview, she was already working on our floor and then often dropped by with Sergey and me, bringing a little charm and magic of natural female beauty into our everyday lives.