In the parliament elections in 1995 the oligarchs created their own party. Adam Curtis, Russia 1985-1999: TraumaZone VII: 1995-1999
There was a presidential election due next year. The fear was that Russia would become a communist state again. ibid.
The oligarchs decided they would make sure Yeltsin won ‘by any means necessary’. ibid.
The oligarchs were now effectively in control of the political system. ibid.
Yeltsin won the election by a small margin. There was also widespread evidence of voter fraud. ibid.
The Russian government had now lost all control. ibid.
People rushed to take their saving out of the banks. But they found there was nothing there. ibid.
The oligarchs and the dwindling group around Yeltsin in the Kremlin chose an anonymous bureaucrat. He would be their creature. ibid.