improved but when someone really wants to break the rules, unfor tunately, they can do it. It's a big concern, as it is causing real losses and damaging investor confidence in this country He cited as an example his firm's investment in a Russian energy company in which millions of dollars were transferred out of the company in exchange for assets of questionable value."66 The Russian government is another source of potential abuse for shareholders. The government has shown a tendency to intervene in business to promote its own interests. A primary method involves ma ing dubious claims of unpaid taxes, which are then used as justification for seizing assets. This method was used in 2006 to transfer the assets from privately held Yukos to Gazprom-Russia's largest oil company, which the Russian government controls. Government corruption also occurs at the regional level as regional governors accept bribes from local employers in exchange for protection from foreign competition. The government also interferes to maintain employment levels and prevent mass layoffs. Finally, lack of transparency restricts the influence of sharehold- ers. Disclosure requirements are weak, obscuring the nature of inter- party transactions. A state-controlled media also contributes to a lack of transparency.