On February 8, 1918, the new Soviet government repudiated all debts amassed by the tsarist government. Millions of sovereign bonds turned into worthless paper. Tucked away in closets and attics throughout Europe, tsarist bonds rested among useless clutter for generations, until their owners rushed to find them, all of a sudden.
The papers were not so useless, after all. In 1996, Russia made agreements with France and Great Britain, the major debt holders in 1918. Russia would pay France $400 million to redeem tsarist bonds and the British government would use gold belonging to deceased Nicolas II to pay off the tsarist debt to its citizens.
All this was done to clear the way for modern Russia to borrow money from Western countries after the collapse of the USSR. Later, some bond holders complained that this was too little, as they expected to get more, but the issue was considered legally settled by all sides.
Dear readers,
Our website and social media accounts are under threat of being restricted or banned, due to the current circumstances. So, to keep up with our latest content, simply do the following:
If using any of Russia Beyond's content, partly or in full, always provide an active hyperlink to the original material.
Subscribe
to our newsletter!
Get the week's best stories straight to your inbox
