31.10.2014 00:00 / Kommersant

Ministry for Economic Development Slams SROs The Ministry for Economic Development questions the effectiveness of self-regulation. Problems have been identified and listed in a Report on SRO Activity to the President. The lowest point is SROs not being financially motivated to keep participants under tight scrutiny. Return to state regulation in a number of industries, including audit, is likely to put increased pressure on business, warn experts.

29.10.2014 13:20 / MIFC/INTERFAX

Russia Up Two Positions in Doing Business Russia is up two positions at #62 in World Bank/International Financial Corporation (IFC) Doing Business rating. This year the methodology has radically changed, and any comparison with Doing Business-2013, when Russia skipped 20 points to #92, is incorrect. The recalculated standing of Russia for last year is #64. This year Russia advanced to #62, swapping places with Cyprus. In the examined period – June 2013 to June 2014 – Russia implemented merely two reforms that were accounted for by Doing Business, versus five last year.

24.10.2014 19:26 / MIFC

Russia Up 3 Positions in HSBC Expat Explorer Survey Britain’s largest bank HSBC has published its annual Expat Explorer survey, with Russia climbing up three spots to #17.

23.10.2014 14:48 / Interfax

NAUFOR Expects to Agree with CB on Lower Capital Requirements for Brokers and Asset Managers Early in 2015 National Stock Market Participants Association (NAUFOR) is drafting an audit procedure for self-regulating organization (SRO) members who wish to apply for lower capital requirements, NAUFOR CEO Alexey Timofeev told the Russian Stock Market Conference in Ekaterinburg on Thursday.

23.10.2014 12:17 / RBC

Anti-Offshore Bill Introduced to Duma Authors of Tax Code drafts propose a new tax regimen for profits generated by foreign companies controlled by Russians.

21.10.2014 17:07 / Interfax

Duma Passes in Second Reading Tax Arrears Write-off for Abandoned Companies On Tuesday, the State Duma passed in the second reading a draft tax administration reform law, allowing the taxman to write off abandoned companies’ tax arrears. The document is also geared to improve corporate property tax calculation for business centers and shopping malls, as well as boost electronic workflow.

21.10.2014 13:01 / Interfax

Minfin Postpones Critical Infrastructure Regulation The Russian Ministry of Finance will not escalate the passing of ‘critical infrastructure operators’ regulation bill, Deputy Minister Alexey Moiseev told the press Tuesday.

17.10.2014 15:29 / vedomosti.ru

Moscow Exchange to Issue New Instrument in 2016 The new instrument is called clearing participation certificate (CPC) and will enable trading backed by a pool of collateral deposited at National Clearing Center (NCC), said Igor Marich, Money Markets Managing Director at Moscow Exchange.

16.10.2014 08:02 / Interfax

Companies Will No Longer Need ‘Round Stamp’ On Thursday, the Government will review the draft bill on abolishing company stamps, says the Cabinet press release.

15.10.2014 13:09 / Interfax

Federation Council Passes Act to Postpone Guarantee Payments for International Payment Systems Until 2Q 2015 On Wednesday, the Federation Council signed off an Act aimed at postponing guarantee payments for international payment systems until 2Q 2015.

01.10.2014 12:01 / Interfax

NSD to Implement E-Proxy-Voting by May 2015 National Settlement Depositary (NSD) plans to implement ISO 20022 and ISO 15022 GSM notifications by end-2014, with full e-proxy-voting by May 2015.

30.09.2014 12:54 / Interfax

Government Introduces Russia-Kyrgyzstan Cooperation Agreement to Duma for Ratification On Tuesday, the Russian Government introduced for Duma ratification the Russia-Kyrgyzstan Cooperation Agreement, which forms part of the Eurasian Economic Integration process. The bill is posted on the State Duma website.

26.09.2014 13:02 / Interfax

Central Bank Assigns NSD and NCC Critical Financial Market Infrastructure Status The Central Bank of Russia has assigned critical financial market infrastructure status to National Settlement Depositary and National Clearing Center, says the regulator’s online press release.

24.09.2014 12:13 / vedomosti.ru

Working Pensioners Will Continue to Receive Fixed Pension Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has turned down Minfin’s proposal to abolish fixed pension payments to working pensioners, a Government source told Vedomosti. A high-ranking Minfin official and Medvedev’s press officer Natalya Timakova confirmed that the proposal had failed to pass. The decision was carried out at Monday’s working session with the Prime Minister.

22.09.2014 14:36 / Interfax

Minfin to Make Material Infrastructure Operators Register Russian Companies The Ministry of Finance plans to make ‘material infrastructure operators’, such as SWIFT, register a Russian company, Deputy Finance Minister Alexey Moiseev told the press.

22.09.2014 01:12 / MIFC

Europe loses ground as financial centre, Moscow slips to #80 Europe and the Asia-Pacific region are losing ground as financial centres, while capitals in the Middle East and Africa continue to rise, according to Global Financial Centres Index by Z/Yen Group, out today.

10.09.2014 12:06 / vedomosti.ru

Minfin Attempts to Save Funded Pension System Minfin is making an attempt to save the funded pension system, which will be liquidated according to Deputy Prime Minister for Social Security Olga Golodets. The ministry has acquiesced to the withdrawal of over RUB 1 trillion worth of savings for 2014-2015, and is trying to keep the rest. Minfin has drafted a bill (posted on regulation.gov.ru), that limits withdrawals of pension savings to 2014-2015. Going forward, it is business as usual for the funded pension system, states the bill.

09.09.2014 18:25 / Interfax

Eurasian Reinsurance Market Needs Standard Rules Bringing national rules to a common standard is essential for the Eurasian Economic Community reinsurance market, said All-Russia Insurers Union President Igor Jurgens at a Tuesday press conference.

08.09.2014 08:05 / Interfax

Russian Government to Proceed With MIFC Plan Despite Sanctions Sanctions preclude the International Financial Center from emerging as planned, however, the Russian Government will not shelve the concept, said Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev.

03.09.2014 13:03 / Rossiiskaya gazeta

Switzerland Tops WEF Global Competitiveness Index for the 6th Time, Russia up from #64 to #53 Switzerland remains the most competitive country in the world for the 6th consecutive year, according to Global Competitiveness Index (GCI), published by World Economic Forum on Wednesday.

02.09.2014 00:48 / Rossiiskaya gazeta

Well Done: Market Praises Megaregulator The MIFC Taskforce summarized the results of the financial market megaregulator’s inaugural year. Last week’s roundtable discussion at the Moscow Exchange brought together the Central Bank and the financial market participants to a shared conclusion: this was a good year. The other takeaway is: most risks failed to materialize. Head of the MIFC Taskforce Alexander Voloshin called the megaregulator one of the most vital and successful state management reforms in recent years.

27.08.2014 19:09 / MIFC

‘Financial Market Megaregulator: First Year Results’ Roundtable On 27 August, Moscow Exchange hosted a ‘Financial Market Megaregulator: First Year Results’ Roundtable by MIFC Taskforce. Speakers included Head of MIFC Taskforce Alexander Voloshin, First Deputy Chairman of the Bank of Russia Sergey Shvetsov, Deputy Finance Minister Alexey Moiseev, Deputy CEO at Sberbank Bella Zlatkis, NAUFOR Chairman of the Board Alexey Timofeev, NAPF Chairman Konstantin Ugryumov, First Deputy CEO at Alyans Insurance Dmitry Popov, representatives of market participants, SROs and Moscow Exchange.

27.08.2014 18:21 / slon.ru

Central Bank: “Government nailed Russian investor’s hand” The Central Bank is preparing to retaliate against Western financial sanctions. “We need to adjust our tactics in dealing with Western partners”, CB First Deputy Chairman Sergey Shvetsov told the press today at the roundtable celebrating the megaregulator’s first year. Laws regulating the financial market will be amended. This particularly concerns the National Payment System Act (this Act was already toughened in May 2014, amendments in force since 1 July).

27.08.2014 12:38 / Interfax

CB/Minfin Draft Russian SWIFT Bill The Central Bank and Minfin have drafted Russia’s own SWIFT bill, Deputy Finance Minister Alexey Moiseev told the press Wednesday.

25.08.2014 15:43 / vedomosti.ru

Ministry for Economic Development Proposes Extended Rights for Boards of Directors The Ministry for Economic Development has published a draft law granting Board of Directors members access to controlled company information. The draft has been commissioned by Prime Minister Medvedev following his meeting with the Government expert board.

20.08.2014 13:35 / Interfax

Russian School Kids Beat French in Financial Literacy, Says Research Russian schoolchildren show better financial literacy levels than their French counterparts, say the results of Promotion of Financial Literacy and Education project, launched by Minfin and World Bank in 2011.

20.08.2014 13:35 / Interfax

Melbourne Most Liveable City for 4th Time, Moscow #73 - Economist Events in Ukraine have had significant knock-on effects over the past year for cities such as Kiev, Moscow and St Petersburg, according to new Liveability rankings by Economist Intelligence Unit (EUI) – the analytical arm of the British magazine, The Economist.

13.08.2014 16:57 / vedomosti.ru

Minfin Proposes to Protect Pension Savings from Nationalization Deputy Finance Minister Alexey Moiseev requested that pension market participants draft proposals on “transforming RUB 1.1 trillion of pension savings (that the NPF have accumulated by 2013) into non-state pension programs”, four participants of yesterday’s meeting at the Finance Ministry. Moiseev confirmed to Vedomosti that he has made a request to the market “to consider joining reserves and savings under the guarantee system”.

11.08.2014 15:17 / TASS

Minfin Proposes Timeline Updates for MIFC Roadmap The Ministry of Finance has proposed amendments to the Moscow International Financial Center Roadmap, said a MIFC Taskforce member.

11.08.2014 14:54 / MIFC

MSCI Index Maintains Two Russian State Banks MSCI Inc., a leading provider of investment decision support tools worldwide, announced today that following consultation with the investment community, MSCI will maintain Sberbank and VTB Bank in the MSCI Russia Index until further notice.

11.08.2014 14:38 / PRIME

Ministry for Economic Development May Add Affiliation Criteria to Companies law The Ministry for Economic Development is looking into the possibility of introducing amendments regulating affiliation and liability of controlling shareholders into Joint-Stock Companies Act and Limited Liability Companies Act, according to MIFC Roadmap Progress Report.

08.08.2014 19:33 / Interfax

Central Bank Registers NAUFOR Risk Notification Standards for Foreign Securities The Central Bank of Russia has registered the National Stock Market Participants Association (NAUFOR) standards of risk notifications for foreign securities trading, including foreign securities derivatives and indexes, according to the CB press release.

08.08.2014 16:08 / Vedomosti

New Supreme Court: Expectations The structure of the supreme judicial body and the make-up and rotation of the panels affect the quality and effectiveness of courts. These are the factors that define the extent of independence and objectivity of courts in respect to all litigation, particularly business lawsuits.

30.07.2014 18:22 / MIFC

Russian Trading Floors Allowed to Deal in Foreign Securities Without Issuer Agreement President Putin has signed Act 218, amending the Federal Securities Market Act 39 of 22 April 1996. New regulations for foreign securities exchange trading in Russia will be enacted 10 days after official publication.

30.07.2014 16:48 / MIFC

NAUFOR Board of Directors Greenlights Professional Standards Draft On 28 July, the NAUFOR Board of Directors approved the draft of Professional Standards, and passed it on for review to NAUFOR committees. Following approval by committees and the Board, the Standards will be forwarded for approval to the Central Bank.

30.07.2014 08:01 / Interfax

Russian President Rearranges MIFC Taskforce President Putin has signed a directive to change part of the MIFC Taskforce member list. The document has been posted online.

17.07.2014 16:01 / Interfax

Central Bank Lowers the Bar for Payment Systems of National Importance The Russian Central Bank has published technical requirements for payment systems of national importance, going for the softer version than originally planned.

14.07.2014 17:29 / Interfax

NSD Payment System Assigned ‘National Importance’ Status National Settlement Depositary has been recognized as a payment system of ‘national importance’, according to the Bank of Russia website.

07.07.2014 20:00 / TASS

New Anti-Insider Trading Act Due This Fall, Says Voloshin The new draft of the Anti-Insider Trading Act is due in the fall of 2014, Head of the MIFC Taskforce Alexander Voloshin told the press at the City of London – Moscow IFC Joint Liaison Group meeting today.

04.07.2014 15:28 / MIFC

MIFC Taskforce Wins NAUFOR Awards On 3 July 2014, the annual NAUFOR Stock Market Elite 2013 awards ceremony took place in Moscow. Individual investment accounts amendments, passed in end-2013, won the “Stock Market Development Project of the Year” category. Special thanks were given to the Ministry of Finance and the State Duma Budget and Financial Market Committees. MIFC Taskforce was directly involved in the drafting of the bill.

02.07.2014 12:15 / MIFC

Сentral Bank Sells MOEX Stake The Bank of Russia website has reported that on 2 July, the Central Bank sold off 267.3 mln MOEX shares or 11.7% charter capital, at RUB 60 per share, with participation of Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, VTB Capital and Sberbank CIB as financial advisors; Gazprombank and Citigroup as co-contractors — financial advisors.

02.07.2014 08:01 / Interfax

Simplified Broker Client Identification Passed in Second Reading On Tuesday, The Russian State Duma passed in the second reading amendments proposing simplified identification procedure for clients by licensed securities market participants and asset management companies.

01.07.2014 12:00 / MIFC

Important Financial Market Laws Enacted On 1 July 2014 the following important financial market laws were enacted: 1). Federal Act 379 of 21.12.2013 contains innovative amendments that were drafted with the direct involvement of the MIFC Taskforce.The Securities Market Act amendments have introduced two new types of entities – specialized financial companies and specialized project finance companies (the Russian analog of SPV). This change enables us to launch the mechanism of securitization.

01.07.2014 08:47 / Interfax

Russian Banking is Rated among the World’s Top 10 Most Profitable - The Banker Russian banking system is among the world’s top 10 most profitable in 2014’s Top 1000 World Banks ranking.

30.06.2014 11:11 / MIFC

MIFC UK-Russia Joint Liaison Group Meets 7 July A new meeting of the MIFC UK-Russia Joint Liaison Group is due to take place on 7 July in Moscow.

20.06.2014 16:54 / MIFC

Central Bank Expects SRO Act to be Passed by the End of 2014 The Bank of Russia expects the Duma to pass the Financial Market SRO Act by the end of 2014, according to the Central Bank report on Financial Market Development Progress, published on the MIFC Taskforce website.

19.06.2014 11:00 / Interfax

Central Bank Incorporates National Payment Card System Operator The Central Bank of Russia has incorporated the National Payment Card System (NSPK) operator, Bank of Russia Chair Elvira Nabiullina told the press at the State Duma.

18.06.2014 15:14 / Interfax

Yandex Launches Russian Version of Foursquare Russian search engine Yandex on Wednesday released a new Russia-focused social networking application, Yandex.Gorod, which promises to help its users find popular venues and attractions throughout Russia by providing user reviews and locations of nearby bars, banyas and even cash machines — all necessities for daily life in Moscow.

18.06.2014 09:30 / MIFC

Moody’s: New Russian securitization law is credit positive for Russian structured finance The new Russian structured finance legislative platform is credit positive for the Russian structured finance market, says Moody`s Investors Service in a report published today. The new framework contains the key elements required for a broad range of securitization and project finance structures and will provide onshore alternatives to securitization transactions that were previously possible only via offshore issuing vehicles.

10.06.2014 18:21 / Interfax

Duma Committee Passes Amendments to Launch Foreign Shares Trading in Russia The State Duma Financial Markets Committee has approved statutory amendments to launch foreign share trading on Russian exchanges.

10.06.2014 12:59 / Interfax

City Energy Company Plans Electric Car Charging Stations in New Moscow “Location plan for e-car charging stations in New Moscow will be ready by the year-end”, said MOESK General Director Petr Sinyutin.

09.06.2014 14:07 / Interfax

Medvedev Commissions List of CGC State Companies By 11 June, the Ministry for Economic Development, Federal State Property Management Agency, Open Government Minister Mikhail Abyzov and Alexander Voloshin’s MIFC Taskforce are due to introduce to the Government a list of 50%-plus state-owned companies for priority Corporate Governance Code implementation. The Code was passed by the Government in February.

29.05.2014 20:34 / MIFC

Eurasian Economic Integration treaty to come into force 1 January 2015 Presidents Putin, Lukashenko and Nazarbaev have signed the Eurasian Economic Integration treaty.

05.05.2014 17:08 / Interfax

Putin Signs National Payment Card System Bill President Putin has signed the federal National Payment Card (NSPK) bill, says the Kremlin press office.

23.04.2014 15:34 / MIFC

Third-Party Arbitration Bill Finalized The Ministry of Justice is finishing the draft of the Third-Party Arbitration Bill prior to its introduction to the Russian Government.

22.04.2014 13:28 / Interfax

Tax Reform Will Attract More Private Investors to the Stock Market, says NAUFOR National Stock Market Participants Association (NAUFOR) expects an increased flow of private investors to the Russian stock market due to recent change in the tax law.

21.04.2014 18:34 / MIFC

Corporate Governance Code Passed The full version of the Corporate Governance Code has been posted on the MIFC Taskforce website.

07.04.2014 11:26 / MIFC

Independent: Britain’s Banks to Spend Billions on IT Overhaul Britain’s banks will have to spend billions overhauling their creaking IT systems over the next few years, Andrew Bailey, chief executive of the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA), told The Independent.

07.04.2014 00:00 / Interfax

Financial SROs Want Role in Oversight Financial self-regulating organizations (SROs) protest Central Bank plans to side-step them in member audits. A new regulation draft contradicts the Financial Market SRO Act proposed by the CB, and could pose serious threats to market participants.

28.03.2014 16:43 / vedomosti.ru

CB Proposes Insurance for Private Broker Accounts Plans to set up a compensation fund for clients of brokers that cease operation were aired yesterday at the Exchange Forum by Central Bank’s First Deputy Chairman Sergey Shvetsov. “National Stock Market Participants Association (NAUFOR) is drafting a concept — the risks covered by the fund, the fund’s sources of funding”, said Shvetsov, voicing support for the initiative.

28.03.2014 09:36 / RIA Novosti

Duma to Consider Extended Visa Terms The Government has introduced to the State Duma a bill on extended Russian visa terms and simplified visa procedure, the Cabinet website announced Friday.

27.03.2014 15:44 / Interfax

Moscow Exchange and Korea Exchange Sign Partnership MOEX and Korea Exchange (KRX) have signed a financial market development cooperation agreement, says Moscow Exchange release.

27.03.2014 13:53 / banki.ru

CB Does Not Plan to Rid of DRs The Central Bank does not plan to eliminate depositary receipts, however it will promote share trading, said Bank of Russia Deputy Chairman Sergey Shvetsov at the Moscow Exchange Forum.

27.03.2014 13:09 / Interfax

1 January 2015 Earliest for Euroclear to Access Russian Share Market Euroclear will not be technically able to access the Russian share market until 1 January 2015, said Central Bank First Deputy Chairman Sergey Shvestov at Exchange Forum 2014 on Thursday.

20.03.2014 00:05 / RBC - daily

New CB Regulations May Force NPFs Off Market Almost half of non-state pension funds could be forced off the market in the process of establishing a system of mandatory pension savings guarantees. According to CB requirements, to be eligible, NPFs must comply with new capital adequacy ratios. RBC data shows that 8 out of 20 major NPFs, accounting for over 40% of all pension savings, fail to comply with the Bank of Russia requirements. Non-compliant funds will have to return pension savings to the Russian Pension Fund.

18.03.2014 00:05 / RBC - daily

Bank of Russia’s 202 Good Deeds “They asked us what we want. For the financial market, it is a first”, responded licensed participants when the megaregulator approached them for KPI suggestions. Last October, the Bank of Russia warned that oversight and regulation will tighten in order to win the people’s trust and create long-term money.

17.03.2014 11:51 / Interfax

London’s First Loss of World’s #1 Financial Center Title to NY, Moscow #73 For the first time ever, London has surrendered the title of the world’s largest international financial center to New York, according to Z/Yen Group’s biannual Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI).

12.03.2014 13:40 / Interfax

AMs and NPFs Can Invest Pension Savings in Privatized Shares The Russian Government has lifted restrictions on pension savings investment by allowing Asset Management companies and Non-state Pension Funds (NPFs) invest in Russian JSCs, privatized or sold by the Bank of Russia.

03.03.2014 13:12 / CB/MIFC

Central Bank Financial Markets Service Dissolved In accordance with the Bank of Russia-based megaregulator launch plan, (and per Bank of Russia Board of Directors decision of 29 November 2013) the Bank of Russia Financial Markets Service (BRFMS) is officially dissolved as of 3 March 2014.

26.02.2014 12:49 / MIFC

Russia and USA Agree on FATCA Tax Reporting Russia and the USA have approved a joint liaison project on Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act application, Head of Tax and Customs at Minfin Ilya Trunin told the press.

25.02.2014 17:11 / MIFC

State Duma Passes Amendments on Facsimile Signatures for the Visually Handicapped On Tuesday, the State Duma passed the Government bill allowing the visually handicapped to use facsimile signatures in cash transactions.

13.02.2014 18:24 / MIFC/Moscow exchange

Russian Financial Markets Regulator Registers New MOEX Listing Rules On 7 February 2014, the Bank of Russia’s Financial Markets Service registered an amended version of Listing Rules for Moscow Exchange. As part of Russia’s listing reform program, the rules have been brought in line with the Rules for Admission of Securities to Organized Trading previously approved by the regulator.

13.02.2014 17:48 / Vedomosti

Government Drafts New Corporate Code Today, the Government will debate and possibly adopt a new Corporate Governance Code. The draft is a joint effort by the Central Bank Financial Markets Service and the MIFC Taskforce. The new code replaces the 2002 version.

13.02.2014 16:55 / Interfax

Investment Advisors to Appear on Russian Stock Market Draft amendments to the Securities Market Act by the National Association of Stock Market Participants (NAUFOR) outline the business practices of investment consultants in Russia.

13.02.2014 13:32 / RIA Novosti

Shuvalov: Civil Code to Protect Minority Shareholders Rights The Russian Civil Code and corporate law will be soon amended to protect minority shareholders rights, said First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov at a Government session.

13.02.2014 13:03 / PRIME

Golden Parachutes Limit is 2 Years’ Pay, says Nabiullina The Bank of Russia proposes a 2-year salary limit on golden parachutes for corporate execs, said financial megaregulator Chair Elvira Nabiullina at a Government session.

30.01.2014 15:52 / Interfax

Clearstream and NSD Open Russian Corporate Bonds Market to International Investors on 30 January Clearstream and National Settlement Depositary (NSD) open foreign investor access to the Russian corporate bonds market on 30 January, according to a joint press release.

29.01.2014 10:23 / Interfax

Russia #3 Worldwide in Foreign Direct Investment FDI in developing and transitional economies hit record highs in 2013, according to United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) report.

23.01.2014 17:33 / vedomosti.ru

Police to Speak English Minister of the Interior Vladimir Kolokoltsev said that Russia may get tourist police in the coming years.

23.01.2014 15:36 / vedomosti.ru

Russian Bonds Open to the World From 30 January, Euroclear Bank starts to offer post-trading services on Russian corporate and municipal bonds. Clients can process settlement and use the National Settlement Depositary (NSD) Euroclear account for safekeeping, according to a joint Euroclear/NSD press release.

22.01.2014 14:34 / Interfax

Foreign Investors’ Share in Russian Corporate Bonds Market May Triple The share of foreign investors in the Russian Corporate Bonds market may increase over three times in the next 2-3 years, worth USD 10-15bn or 10%, Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov told the press.

20.01.2014 18:22 / CBFMS/MIFC

Implementation of e-comms in the Russian financial market On 17 January 2014, Moscow International Financial Center Taskforce hosted a meeting on Electronic Communications with First Deputy Chairman of the Bank of Russia, Head of Financial Markets Service Sergey Shvetsov and financial market participants.

20.01.2014 17:16 / PRIME

Tax Code Amendments Cut OTC Derivatives Market Costs Tax Code Amendments, in force since 1 January 2014, will cut costs for standardized OTC Derivatives Market participants, says Moscow Exchange press release.

09.01.2014 11:00 / Interfax

Civil Code Amendments on Affiliation to be Reviewed by Supreme Arbitration Court Panel, Business and Government Amendments to the Russian Civil Code regarding affiliation, met with fierce opposition by Russian majors, will be reviewed by a panel formed by business, the Government and the Supreme Arbitration Court.