Bank that gave loan to French National Front went bankrupt in Russia
The Central Bank of the Russian Federation has established an interim administration for the first Czech-Russian bank, which is known for providing loans to the National Front political party (France), headed by Marine Le Pen. “The interim administration will quickly prepare proposals regarding the future activities of the bank,” as reported on the bank’s website.
Russian media had previously reported on problems at the bank. In particular, on the 13th of March, the daily newspaper Vedomosti reported that after an audit of the bank, it was deemed necessary for it to increase reserves.
The first Czech-Russian bank is known for providing loans to the French National Front extreme-right political party, headed by Marine Le Pen. In late 2014, the National Front agreed to a € 9 million loan. Later, it was reported that the loan was actually for € 40 million, though Marine Le Pen denied this amount.
The issuing of this loan caused a scandal across Europe, as it was feared that the Kremlin was funding right-wing populists in the West in order to weaken the European Union. Earlier, the President of the National Front political party stated that the European Union will fall apart and that she will contribute to that purpose.