MOSCOW, May 29 (RIA Novosti) - Construction and development companies will report to executive-branch agencies of Russia's regions following amendments to the construction investment law, the head of the financial watchdog said Monday.
Against the backdrop of protestors taking to the Moscow streets last week to demonstrate against firms that had taken their money but failed to build any housing, parliament and ministers are set to propose a number of laws to protect housing investors from being defrauded.
Oleg Vyugin, head of the Federal Service for Financial Markets, said oversight functions would be transferred to the country's 88 constituent members under the legislative new amendments instead of construction and developer companies presenting quarterly reports to Russia' s financial markets watchdog.
"Federation members allot land plots for construction projects and issue licenses, so it is quite logical that the bodies issuing [construction] permits should bear responsibility for this," Vyugin said.
Last week, deceived housing investors protested in downtown Moscow against construction companies who allegedly defrauded them of their investments by failing to build housing.
One real estate investment firm, Sotsialnaya Initsiativa, stands accused of defrauding up to 2,500 apartment buyers by collecting over 100 million rubles (about $3 mln) for apartments that were never built.
The Moscow Region's government promised May 19 to settle all issues with deceived investors by June.
