The arrest of Michael Calvey in Russia rattles foreign businesses
The move signals Russia’s indifference to foreign investment
ONE OF MODERN Russia’s oldest and largest investment funds, Baring Vostok Capital Partners (BVCP) was launched in 1994. It has raised $3.7bn in capital, investing $2.8bn into 80 companies across the former Soviet Union, including some of Russia’s leading firms, such as its tech star, Yandex. Vedomosti, Russia’s top business daily, called the company “the symbol of direct investment in Russia”. BVCP’s American founder, Michael Calvey, has been unwaveringly bullish about the Russian market through crises, recessions and geopolitical tensions, staying put even as other foreign investors wound down their businesses after Russia annexed Crimea and launched a war in eastern Ukraine. Even in a country where business disputes can get messy, he was one of the last people anyone would expect to find behind bars.
This article appeared in the Europe section of the print edition under the headline “Who needs it?”
Europe February 23rd 2019
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From the February 23rd 2019 edition
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The return of Europe’s oldest scourge
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