The RF Central Bank (the "CBR") recently has announced that the requirement to hold special transaction accounts and noninterest reserves for certain transactions will be lifted on July 1, 2006, as opposed to the original deadline of January 1, 2007.

The RF Constitutional Court (the "Constitutional Court") recently ruled in favor of public communications network operators in a case initiated by the Koryaksky Autonomous District Duma.

The RF Duma is considering an amendment to the Civil Code that, if ratified, will resolve an inconsistency in Russian law and open the door for any commercial entity to engage in factoring.

GRATA International is an international law firm that provides services in the following practices, including corporate law, international trade and customs law, project finance and public-private partnership

The RF State Duma is currently preparing for the first reading of amendments to the law "On the Securities Market" which would provide for the introduction of Russian Depositary Receipts ("RDR") in Russia (the "Draft RDR Amendments".

Concessions are an effective tool for attracting private capital to infrastructure facilities. The introduction of relevant Russian legislation has, therefore, been long awaited.

The Russian Federation ("RF") State Duma is currently preparing for a second reading of a draft law which would amend the RF Law 'On Limited Liability Companies' (the "LLC Law") (the "Draft LLC Amendments"), significantly affecting the legal status and procedures governing LLCs in the RF. The most significant changes proposed are summarized below.

Russia's need to improve its infrastructure has led to a concerted move to embrace Public Private Partnerships.