When Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Western economies scrambled to coordinate an offensive of their own: sanctions. They weaponized economic tools in the hope of blunting Putin’s attacks, and more than $300 billion in Russian assets were frozen in Europe. Almost overnight, these governments embarked on an unprecedented financial experiment that is drastically altering the geopolitical order — but at what cost?

Joining us this week on Whale Hunting is investigative reporter Stephanie Baker, who sits down with Tom to discuss how and where sanctions are working, the inter-oligarch war playing out between antagonistic Russian tycoons, and how cryptocurrency, technology supply chains, and unscrupulous enablers all help Russia’s war machine rumble on. Not to mention Moscow-on-the-Gulf: the new home for Russian roubles in the UAE.

Mentioned in this week’s episode:

Stephanie Baker’s new book, Punishing Putin: Inside the Global Economic War to Bring Down Russia.
Read an except of her book in Bloomberg here: ‘They Have Stolen Our Business’: When You Leave Russia, Putin Sets the Terms
Sanctions evasions via Hong Kong shell companies: The Illicit Flow of Technology to Russia Goes Through This Hong Kong Address
Zeke Faux’s recent book on crypto’s wild ride: Number Go Up
Zeke’s appearance on Whale Hunting earlier this year

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