Ultimate Guide To Russian Oligarchs | Supply Chain Catch-22 | Mattress Mack’s Winning Formula

Plus: Inside The Dutch Superyacht Builder Owned By Russian Billionaire Vagit Alekperov

Good morning.

International sanctions in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine have put the spotlight on the country’s complex, often corrupt, world of billionaire oligarchs—and Forbes has a guide to make it easier to navigate. We’re also covering the Catch-22 faced by retailers looking to avoid supply chain disruption by stocking up for the holiday season early, and how one Texan furniture mogul has worked out a winning formula from betting on sports events. Finally, don’t miss this story about the $280 million Dutch superyacht builder owned by a Russian billionaire.

In The News Today

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers suspended SpaceX’s application to expand its South Texas rocket launch site, saying the company failed to supply information on how the expansion would impact the environment in and around the Boca Chica property.

Energy giant Shell said it expects to take a hit of up to $5 billion in the first quarter of 2022 following its decision to leave Russia in response to President Vladimir Putin’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine. 

Top Take-Aways

When Putin ordered troops into Ukraine on February 24, he wreaked havoc on Russian oligarchs’ massive fortunes, their sprawling businesses and carefully crafted reputations. 14 Russian oligarchs have been sanctioned by the U.S., U.K. or EU since then, adding to 11 others who were hit in response to Russia’s annexation of Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula in 2014, but at least 50 Russian billionaires have so far remain untouched.

After the Treasury decided to block the Kremlin from using its dollar reserves, Russia’s creditors face the unappetizing prospect of accepting debt payments in rubles, a currency whose value is highly exposed to changes in the geopolitical arena.

The six oil companies whose executives testified about gas prices before the House Energy and Commerce Committee on Wednesday contributed a total $383,000 in support of the lawmakers questioning them, 97% of which went to Republicans, and more than a third to just one Congresswoman.

Plagued by unresolved supply chain problems, companies are already stocking up for the holiday season to avoid last year’s delay. But as retailers order early—or order more than they did last year to compensate—the result can be a self-fulfilling prophecy.

The airline industry has been pushing the Biden administration to let the federal mask mandate for public transportation expire as scheduled on April 18, but multiple public surveys suggest that the majority of Americans are still not quite ready to see it go.

Jim McIngvale, the Houston furniture mogul known as “Mattress Mack,” likes to place multi-million-dollar wagers on marquee sporting events such as the Super Bowl, March Madness and the World Series linked store promotions. But he’s not leaving it to chance—he wins either way.

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