You can't pick up the newspapers these days without reading
about the difficulty that Russian companies are facing in raising
capital. Commercial loans are hard to get and extremely expensive;
some lenders charge 20% or more. Similarly, raising capital both
within Russia and internationally has become much more difficult
and expensive. Now the Federal Service for the Financial Markets
("FSFM") seems intent to make it virtually impossible for
Russian companies to raise capital in international markets,
despite the great need for finance, and the small size and
immaturity of the Russian financial markets.
The London Stock Exchange has been and remains the primary
market for trading Russian shares internationally. In 2006 - 2007,
48 Russian companies placed their shares on foreign and domestic
exchanges, raising an aggregate of $41.3 billion; 31 Russian
companies placed shares on foreign exchanges, 28 of which preferred
the LSE, and a total of $24 billion was raised.
