CENTRAL BANK GAVE "TACIT" APPROVAL TO FRAUDULENTFIRMS.

The day after Russian premier Viktor Chernomyrdin saidthat the government would not compensate citizens who lost moneyin fraudulent companies, Moskovsky komsomolets reportedAugust 24 that "some facts suggest that these companies didtheir illegal business with the tacit approval of the CentralBank of Russia." Meanwhile, FIA reported August 24 that theCentral Bank may have granted more than five billion rubles inillegal loans.

New Interior Minister Finds Graft Rampant in the Ranks.