Passport and Visa Woes

Sitting in London, being charged a small fortune for breathing in and out. Getting in to a taxi is just ruinous. The air in the tube between Waterloo and Bank is being pumped directly from the jungle in Borneo before being flavoured with eau de bomzh. Frankly revolting.

And then if I intend to consume my double shot of vastly over-priced coffee at the location at which I purchased it I get to pay VAT. That’s value added tax – the most oxymoronically incorrect tax.

And all because Her Majesty’s Government – actually if the overpaid German had anything to do with it she would never let them anywhere near the corridors of power – find it physically impossible to issue a simple passport within 100% of the time that it states that they will provide a new passport. I’d say replace them, but with what – other morons. Better the morons you know etc. They were busy – poor loves.

And so finally with a new passport in hand and an invitation (provided ahead of time – well that’s why the Scots invented whiskey) I turn up to the agency with the appropriate documents. Appropriate – the documents stated on the Consulate of the Russian Embassy in London’s website. The website states specifically that if you are applying for a multi-entry business visa the original of the invitation is required.

Implicitly if you are applying for a visa of anything other than a multi-entry business visa you don’t need the original. Except you do.

The random multiple murderer in the Notting Hill area this morning was me.

Is this Open Warfare?

I don’t normally give much truck to the Kremlin watchers – mental masturbation on a teenage scale, and it’s really the White House you need to watch these days – whatever.

It would appear that, Sechin, the “loser” of the Presidential election is up to something, and for the geeky amongst you its called third party access (some additional comment below). In short, GAZP owns all the gas pipelines in Russia and you have to apply for access to GAZP, who can refuse access on the basis that the pipeline is at capacity, without having to provide any data – transparent eh?

Ostensibly, Sechin in his new role as energy tsar wants to encourage more third party production of gas by making access to the pipeline more transparent. This is unequivocally a good thing. Did I mention that Sechin is also Chairman of Rosneft – the largest gainer from TPA?

But even standard conflicts of interest is not the story. Two months ago TPA was not even on the agenda – the EU tried and was told in no uncertain terms that the subject was not for discussion. And now it’s front page Moscow news. I get the feeling that GAZP lacks a political heavyweight to protect it right now and the Fifth Directorate Thugs are taking advantage.

I mean it’s not as if you expected them to take losing lightly – just ask Khordokovsky.

Dumfounded by Ignorance

I have been sweating like a hooded rapist at the gym for the past couple of weeks. BBC podcasts have been my principal accompaniment; in particular a four-part series entitled The Kremlin and the World. The reporter, Tim Whewell, is currently leading the race for “The Edward Lucas prize for journalism most bereft of facts.” In fact he lines up alongside Neil Buckley of the FT as laziest journalist reporting on energy in the FSU – and those I can tell you are the elevated heights of intellectual idleness.

It is difficult to yell out loud in frustration when simultaneously gasping for air. I successfully achieved this state, much to the surprise of the dyev on the next door machine, as a result of a piece of idiocy which goes something like this:

“And so Russia is on a massive military build up, albeit on a scale 25 times smaller than the US.”

Mr Whewell was apparently the BBC’s correspondent in Moscow in the good old, bad old days. It would appear that he has failed to note that the Russian military is no more efficient than the Soviet military was “back in the day.” In fact the great military machine could probably have been halted by a couple of strategically located off-licences and a soup kitchen.

My greater frustration was saved for his “Edward Lucas” nomination winning piece of rubbish on gas politics. In addition to the usual Khordokovsky rubbish, in which buying the Duma makes you a democratic challenger and using negotiating tactics which would make Tony Soprano in to a shy retiring civil servant makes you a business visionary, Mr Whewell provided us with a master class in post-realism energy politics.

Under this scenario, western Europe becomes increasingly dependent on Russian gas because its the cheapest clean and safe energy source (nuclear power being cheaper but arguably not cleaner and definitely not safer). As a result Russia is the bad guy, because (genius reporting this) it has a lot of gas, in fact more than anyone else who can sell it to Europe.

Russia’s energy policy is not particularly friendly and is worthy of informed criticism – Mr Whewell is not informing the debate he lowering it to the lowest common denominator of 8 pint drivel.

Rant over.

More on the Law

Our esteemed new leader announced in St. Petersburg that Moscow should become a global financial centre.

At the same gathering Rex Tillerson*, CEO of Exxon-Mobil, said that no one has any faith in the Russian legal system.

Forecast; Moscow joins Frankfurt as a non-global financial centre. And the comparison between the two not entirely bogus. It’s not just legal nihilism which will hold Moscow back. The financial industry is a fast moving money machine (note not always making). Legal systems which are prescriptive will always be a decade behind the financial system.

But the bigger issue is legal nihilism which is a social state of mind in Russia. It is not enough to just strengthen the judiciary. A law enforcement agency which is not the tool of one side or another, or indeed of itself, and a mindset which expects law to be the primary force – and that is generations and generations away.

Result – a lot of nice real estate in Moscow.

* A user of the law, not a believer in the law.

New era in Russia as Medvedev is sworn in

You small fucker

Now your sworn in

New era in Russia as Medvedev is sworn in

[From FT.com / World - New era in Russia as Medvedev is sworn in ]

Alfa vs Reiman

Reiman definitely on the ropes and taking a severe beating. Frankly I find this all somewhat unfathomable.

In search of a convincing explanation as to why Reiman allowed himself to get so convincingly cornered.
I am assuming, in lieu of a better answer, that this is a case of mistaken legal jurisdiction i.e. Reiman applied the Russian law to Bermuda, somehow failing to pay off the judge along the way. Or maybe, shock of shocks, given that it was a British judge seconded to Bermuda, the judge was incorruptible – it happens you know.

Bermuda Fund Pleads Guilty – WSJ.com

Bermuda Fund Pleads Guilty
By GLENN R. SIMPSON
May 2, 2008; Page B5

An investment fund allegedly controlled by Russia’s minister of telecommunications pleaded guilty in the British Virgin Islands to furnishing false information and perverting the course of justice.

Shtockman – Economic’s Not Compelling

From Ben’s bne scary news that the great saviour, aka Shtockman, may not be economic. Really scary.

Scandinavian Oil and Gas Magazine has reported that Gazprom, StatoilHydro and Total may pull out of Shtokman Development Co. before a final decision on the Shtokman field development is made in late 2009. According to StatoilHydro’s representative in Russia Benedikt Henriksen, “it could happen that the (overall) design isn’t good enough and cost structures could prove unacceptable”.

We have always considered the Shtokman project to be technically challenging and potentially not viable even in the current high energy price environment. We see Gazprom’s targets to launch gas production and deliver the first LNG from the project in 2013 as ambitious. For these reasons, we do not currently incorporate Shtokman into our Gazprom model.

RBS Marks the Bottom?

I have long thought that RBS owning up to its stretched balance sheet would mark the bottom. If this is the bottom is there any upside or just more sideways movement.

FT.com / Companies / Financial services – RBS considers rights issue

RBS considers rights issue

By Peter Thal Larsen, Jane Croft and James Mackintosh in London

Published: April 17 2008 20:20 | Last updated: April 17 2008 23:43

The Royal Bank of Scotland is considering launching a massive rights issue to rebuild its capital reserves, a sharp reversal of its previous position that could trigger a wave of similar offerings by other lenders.

The rights issue is one of a number of options RBS is considering, people familiar with the matter said, stressing that the board of directors had not yet made any decisions. The bank is expected to unveil plans at its annual meeting next Wednesday.
EDITOR’S CHOICE
In depth: UK bank earnings – Feb-25
RBS sells European consumer division – Apr-04
RBS cuts 200 jobs as senior trader goes – Apr-10
Video: RBS profits up despite more writedowns – Feb-28
RBS begins to see benefits of ABN deal – Apr-01
RBS considers asset disposals – Mar-11

A cash call by RBS would help strengthen its capital reserves, which have been stretched to the limit by its role in leading the €71bn (£57bn) break-up bid for ABN Amro, the Dutch lender, last year. That deal has looked increasingly ill-judged as turmoil in the capital markets has prompted an increased focus on banks’ balance sheets.

It was unclear on Thursday night how much fresh capital RBS might seek, but it is likely to be a substantial sum. Analysts at UBS calculate that RBS needs an additional £9bn merely to bring its capital ratios into line with other UK banks. But given the mounting pressure from regulators, RBS is likely to seek significantly more. The bank is also expected to explore the sale of some businesses, including its Direct Line insurance subsidiary.

Though analysts have been predicting an RBS rights issue for several months, the move would, nonetheless, mark a dramatic U-turn for Sir Fred Goodwin, its chief executive, who has repeatedly insisted that the bank does not need more capital.

A cash call would be likely to trigger calls from shareholders for the departure of Sir Fred, who brushed aside widespread scepticism to take control of ABN Amro last summer.

But RBS is likely to argue that the ABN Amro deal is performing better than initially expected, and that Sir Fred remains the best-qualified executive to ensure the deal is a success.

RBS’s hand may be strengthened if other British banks follow its lead. Reaction to the bank’s decision will be closely watched by rivals such as Barclays and HBOS, which are also under pressure to raise fresh capital. Politicians and regulators have in recent weeks called on banks to raise fresh capital rather than reining in lending.

A rights issue by RBS would mark the first significant reaction to the credit squeeze by a European bank aside from UBS, the Swiss bank that has suffered heavy losses. European banks’ reluctance to issue capital is in stark contrast to lenders in the US, which have been faster to replenish their capital.

RBS on Thursday night said it noted speculation about a “possible rights issue” and added: “RBS confirms that its Interim Management Statement covering trading performance and capital will be made next week.”

RBS shares fell 2.4 per cent to close at £3.66, valuing the bank at about £37bn.

Smells of Moscow

Cheap subbotnik paint in spring being liberally daubed on unwashed walls.

I know that smells don’t really translate well on to blogs. I am sure that someone is working on it.

Alfa vs Reiman (Sub-Act)

I first saw this reported in Uncle Ben’s excellent BnE, where it was suggested that it might have been a hoax kidnapping as Rozhetskin is on an international wanted list. The MT might be hinting at the same thing. I am not an insider on this stuff so its hard to know.

I am delighted that it has appeared in my feed-reader as life was feeling a little dull.

If it really was a case of kidnapping then I feel marginally sorry for the estimable Leonid; but it is marginal.

Strange to say about a guy who has his own private plane – but he really is a sub-act.

As an afterthought; more evidence of the ceasefire ending?

U.S. Businessman Vanishes in Latvia
By Tai Adelaja
Staff Writer

Sergei Porter / Vedomosti
Rozhetskin, here seen in 2004, had arranged to meet unidentified individuals on Sunday, Latvian media reported.

A Russian-born American businessman who disappeared under murky circumstances from his vacation house in Latvia is believed to be alive, the U.S. Embassy in the country said Wednesday.

Leonid Rozhetskin, who made headlines after selling a blocking stake in MegaFon to rival Alfa Group in 2003, disappeared Sunday night from his house in the costal resort of Jurmala, Latvian police said in a statement.

Police began a massive search effort after a sport utility vehicle believed to belong to Rozhetskin was found abandoned in the city. Rozhetskin’s private plane left Latvia in a hurry on Sunday, possibly without his consent, Latvian news agency Leta reported Wednesday, citing “unofficial information.”

Rozhetskin had an appointment with unidentified individuals Sunday, but a man who turned up at his house discovered he was missing and tipped off police, Leta said.

The visitor said he found the house in a complete mess, with desks and a sofa overturned and what looked like blood stains on the floor, the agency reported.

Tests will be conducted on blood found in the home as well as what looked like blood stains in the car. Senior police official Aldis Lieljukskis confirmed in a radio interview Wednesday that traces of blood were found and said he suspected “something is not right.”

A spokesperson for the U.S. Embassy in Riga, speaking on customary condition of anonymity, said police believed that Rozhetskin was alive.

“All the information we’ve had so far was from the police in Jurmala. We are giving them all the assistance needed to find the missing man.”

Rozhetskin, 41, was born in Leningrad in 1966 and moved with his family to the United States in 1980, according to his web site. He returned to Russia in 1992 and set up a law firm.

He later turned his attention to the finance sector, co-founding Renaissance Capital and LV Finance, a venture capital firm.

From 2001 to 2005, Rozhetskin was the executive vice chairman of Norilsk Nickel, where he successfully fixed the company’s image troubles and helped boost its share price.

Last year, he teamed up with Eric Eisner, son of Michael Eisner, the former CEO of The Walt Disney Company, to found a movie production company.

Rozhetskin’s sale of the stake in MegaFon sparked a lengthy ownership dispute between Mikhail Fridman’s Alfa Group and the cellular provider.

Bermuda mutual fund IPOC, a shareholder in MegaFon linked by a Swiss tribunal to IT and Communications Minister Leonid Reiman, filed a racketeering suit in 2006 in the United States against Alfa Group.

The suit centered on transactions in 2003, in which Rozhetskin, who was also a defendant in the case, sold LV Finance’s stake in MegaFon to Alfa despite having already given option rights to IPOC. IPOC claimed it had paid for the shares and honored all the terms of the option agreement and that Rozhetskin sought to gain more money from IPOC for the stake.

In October 2006, Russian prosecutors issued a warrant for his arrest.

A three-judge private commercial tribunal in Zurich concluded in 2006 that Reiman was IPOC’s owner and had abused his government position to dilute the state’s stake in CT Mobile, a mobile firm that later formed the backbone of MegaFon.

Reiman has denied the allegations.

Rozhetskin, a Harvard-trained lawyer, contributed regular columns for The Moscow Times in the 1990s and has provided legal services for the newspaper.

[From U.S. Businessman Vanishes in Latvia]