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Benedicte Gravrand, Opalesque Europe:

Bill Browder, founder of UK-based Hermitage Capital Management, has shown he is a tireless investigator, an opportunistic investor, and a fearless campaigner. In this sense, he has a unique position and reputation – and a unique story - within the hedge fund industry. He also has a reputation in Russia.

He recalled the 90s at the Terrapinn Hedge 2010 London conference on Wednesday, when his asset management company, then based in Moscow, invested in Gazprom after uncovering major thefts through lengthy investigations. The share price eventually went up 100 times. At that time, Browder also issued details of his investigative work to various western papers. He then went on to publicise corporate scandals in Russia for the next four years. At the time, this was with the implicit support of Vladimir Putin (the President of the Russian Federation between 2000 and 2008), who would step in and do his own round of investigations each time Hermitage came up with something.

That was until Mr. Khodorkovsky’s arrest in 2003 and the destruction of his Yukos oil company. Browder was not allowed to come into Russia, following an overseas trip, in 2005, and his clients subsequently redeemed from his Russia fund. His Moscow offices were raided by the police, and one of Hermitage’s lawyers, Sergei Magnitsky (the others had fled to London) was arrested and eventually died i......................

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