Russian Government Offers $3B in Guarantees to Strategic Companies

In the face of potentially wider Western sanctions on Russian interests, the Russian government has offered state guarantees worth up to $3 billion for 199 companies. The guarantees are being made to reassure lenders that strategic companies will survive the Russian economic downturn. Paul Whitfield, correspondent for The Deal, explains that means the companies' debt will be underwritten by the state. However, Whitfield says $3 billion is not a lot of money when you consider the amount of debt these companies have, so these guarantees may not actually be very reassuring to lenders. Looking forward, Whitfield stresses that Russian companies are under a lot of pressure and without an end to Western sanctions in the near to medium term, their situation is only going to get worse.