Mr Franzia, who anticipated the glut, cut production at his own vineyards and then stepped in to buy the excess grapes at a knock-down price.

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Rather than let the bank fall into foreign hands, however, the government cancelled the tender and sold it to a local Polish consortium for a knock-down price.

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Boris Berezovsky claimed he held a sizeable stake in the younger oligarch's oil and aluminium companies, and was bullied into selling those shares at a knock-down price after Roman Abramovich threatened that the Kremlin - with which Mr Berezovsky had fallen out - would seize them.

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The knock-down price was in aid of charity - following a plea for help from Julien's old school, Twynyrodyn Infants.

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