Danish journalists noted that the Committee on External Economic Relations in the Mayor's office was responsible for foreigners in Saint Petersburg.
Magnús lost most of his fortune in the 2008 financial crisis due to the high leverage in his investments in contracts for difference, the so-called CFD scheme, in which banks issue loans secured by shares, which, under Icelandic law, the loan was for up to 25% of the equity of the shares, and earnings come from the exchange rate difference: for example, between high inflation rate-weak currency Iceland and either Japan or Switzerland which, in the early 2000s, had a relatively strong currency compared to the Icelandic króna and low inflation rate.
[6] Iceland banks, such as Glitnir, Kaupthing and Magnús's Landsbanki, had many Russian oligarchs and Russian entities as clients including Oleg Deripaska, Rusal, Roman Abramovich, Renova, Mikhail Fridman, Alfa Group, Alisher Usmanov, Sberbank, Gennady Timchenko, Gunvor, Igor Sechin, Rosneft, Norilsk Nickel.
[2][6] Previously, according to Filipe Turover Chudínov, many Russians stole IMF funds after the 1998 financial collapse of Russia.
[9][10][11][12][13][a] Avion Group's Official Web Site Magnús Þorsteinsson declared bankrupt - RÚV 04.05.2009