ArcelorMittal and Russia’s state-controlled VTB Group have hit a fresh snag in their pursuit of Essar Steel India Ltd., an insolvent producer that could fetch at least $6 billion, Bloomberg News reported. Advisers evaluating the offers for Essar Steel are recommending that all the bids be disqualified, according to people with knowledge of the matter. A committee of Essar Steel lenders will meet later this week to discuss the eligibility of the proposals, the people said, asking not to be identified because the information is private.

Moody’s Investors Service isn’t too concerned about a classified U.S. Treasury report about sanctions that’s been hanging over Russian bond markets. The ratings agency said that it would consider raising Russia to investment grade even if the nation is burdened with the kind of penalties that have curbed Venezuela’s ability to finance its debts, Bloomberg News reported. Moody’s put Russia on positive outlook last week, setting it on course for a possible raise out of junk in the next 12-18 months.

The Kremlin said yesterday that it hoped an out-of-court settlement reached between Russia’s largest oil producer Rosneft and the Sistema conglomerate would be implemented smoothly, Reuters reported. In a phone call with reporters, spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the Kremlin hoped the settlement, under which Rosneft will receive 100 billion roubles ($1.72 billion) from businessman Yevtushenkov’s Sistema, will not run into any problems.

Russia signed an agreement to restructure $3.15 billion of debt owed by Venezuela, throwing a lifeline to a crisis-wracked ally that’s struggling to repay creditors, Bloomberg News reported. The pact gives Venezuela some much-needed breathing room as it faces the much more complicated task of restructuring its $140 billion of bonds and foreign loans. For Russia, the deal underscores the costs that come with President Vladimir Putin’s geopolitical ambitions across the globe. A $900 million hole had been left in its 2017 budget plan by Venezuela’s failure to pay on time.

Rosneft, the world’s largest listed oil producer, has reported a lower than expected 81 per cent annual rise in net profits in the third quarter and falling free cash flow thanks to a spending spree on acquisitions, the Financial Times reported. The Kremlin-controlled company said net profit rose to Rbs47bn ($792m) in the third quarter, thanks to a rise in global oil prices and an increase in production. But free cash flow fell 83 per cent to just Rbs8bn, because of higher spending and upstream expenses.

Russia risks having to bail out more banks owned by large industrial groups unless there is rapid consolidation, VTB First Deputy Chief Executive Yuri Solovyov said. Two of Russia's biggest banks, Otkritie and B&N, have had to be taken over by the central bank in the past two months after a liquidity squeeze, the International New York Times reported on a Reuters story. Such "pocket banks", a post-Soviet phenomenon which involved industrial groups needing their own banking wings to finance business, are still common in Russia, but some are struggling.

Russia and Venezuela may sign an agreement on restructuring Venezuelan debt by the end of the year if terms drafted by their finance ministries are approved, said Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov. “In general, we worked out with the finance ministry such conditions,” Siluanov told reporters in Washington, where he attended the International Monetary Fund fall meeting, Bloomberg News reported.

Russia’s B&N Bank, which is being rescued by the central bank, said on Wednesday it will write off subordinated debt worth $226.56 million owed to its shareholders, Reuters reported. B&N - the second bank to be rescued by the central bank in less than a month after Otkritie - does not have publicly traded subordinated debt in issue, unlike Otkritie where some of the junior debt will be written off during the bail out.

The failure of two big Russian lenders within a month has cast doubt on how much longer a phenomenon of the post-Soviet financial system, the "pocket bank", can last. The practice of conglomerates running their own banks grew out of the early days of Russian capitalism in the 1990s. But with authorities now purging a sector beset by bad debts, owners are trying to get rid of their remaining pocket banks and finding few willing buyers, if any, the International New York Times reported on a Reuters story.

Russian private air carrier VIM Airline has faced a severe economic adversary and has asked the state for financial aid with a possibility of going into a receivership, the company said on its social media accounts on Monday. The company, top 10 among the Russian airlines, also known as VIM-AVIA, has cancelled or delayed dozens of flights for the past few days, Reuters reported. “Unfortunately, we have to state that the VIM-AVIA airline has been faced with a hard economic situation.