Articles by Olga Razumovskaya



Germany's HiPP Produces Organic Baby Food in Kaliningrad

In a country where organic food has a limited following, German baby-food maker HiPP has its work cut out for it. But HiPP is so confident that its all-organic baby-food products will win over parents that it has opened a factory in Kaliningrad.

Nizhny Novgorod

Nizhny Novgorod, at different times in its history, has been called "the pocket of Russia," "Russia's Detroit" and "Russia's third capital." But today it ranks fifth by population and is inhabited by "leftover people."

Starbucks Eager to Please Anyone but Smokers

The Greeks can choose from a wide range of ice-cold drinks at Starbucks. The Chinese find a larger selection of food. And the French munch on waffles. But Russians cannot smoke over their mugs of vanilla latte.

Tomsk

The 19th-century writer Anton Chekhov praised Tomsk's food, criticized its women, and ultimately recommended that the city wasn't worth visiting. Today's Tomsk would beg to differ. A lot has changed since then.

A Banker's Gift Spurs Blind Entrepreneur’s Vision

"I used to think, what can the blind do? But then they fixed my back," said Sergei Ogarkov, finance manager of the Lights of the Lighthouse, a grocery store in northern Moscow.

Small Firms Get Help to Go Online

St. Petersburg-based hosting company Infobox on Tuesday launched a new project called Nastart.ru that uses Microsoft technology and allows small and medium-sized businesses to get online exposure and cut costs by creating a free web site.

Skolkovo 'Population' Grows by 21

The expansion of Moscow's borders and creation of the Moscow Federal District won't affect Skolkovo, the innovation hub near Moscow, Viktor Vekselberg told reporters.

Microelectronics Stands at the Crossroads

Mikron is proud of its microchips. It uses objects so small that 1,000 of them laid side by side equal the thickness of one human hair. The only problem is that this achievement — known as the 90-nanometer process — was set in the West in 2002, a dinosaur age ago for the industry.

With Russia’s Backing, Lagarde Elected to IMF

With Russia’s support, French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde was elected Tuesday as the new managing director of the International Monetary Fund. Lagarde will start her five-year term on July 5.

VIP Banking Attracts Clients as Dynasties Form

When choosing private banking services, forget pop stars flying in on a private jet for your son's bar mitzvah or beluga caviar being delivered to your doorstep on a whim — such stories have nothing to do with the real thing.

Skolkovo Innovation Hub Braving the Waters

The ship known as Skolkovo has set sail, already having onboard 60 companies, including a handful of multinationals — whose brand presence is considered a significant stamp of approval.

Organic Foods Buyers See Safety in Worms

With a national ban on EU vegetables entering a second week, the producers and sellers of organic foods are eagerly welcoming an influx of buyers in hope of winning over new loyal customers.

OECD Suggests More ‘Balance’ in Innovation

The Russian innovation system is distorted by imbalances that can be addressed through a policy of “balancing acts,” a senior official with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development said Monday.

Altimo Sells 123.6M VimpelCom Shares

Altimo, which manages Alfa Group's telecommunication assets, has sold 123.6 million preferred shares in VimpelCom Ltd., or 5.995 percent of its voting rights in the company, to the Cyprus-based Forrielite, for $100 million, the company said in a statement Monday.

Faster but Later: 4G Readies for 2015 Launch

Though there are no advertisements in Russia yet for fourth generation, or 4G, mobile communications, the consortium recently formed by the top mobile operators plans to offer a better service, albeit a bit later.

Rusnano Puts Store and Database Online

The Rusnano nanotechnologies corporation launched a new information portal Thursday that will serve as the first Internet store for nanotechnology products in the country and a source of information on the companies producing them.

Yandex Ups Price and Takes Off

Search engine Yandex announced the pricing of its NASDAQ initial public offering of 52 million shares at $25 per share Tuesday, higher than the earlier price guidance of $20 to $22 per share — and shot up more than 42 percent in the first half day of trading.

In a Sign, Yandex Raises IPO Price

The country’s most popular search engine Yandex has increased its price guidance for its New York IPO scheduled for Tuesday, with the possibility to raise up to $1.4 billion, which would make it the world’s largest tech IPO this year.

Transneft Fights Decision on Minutes

Transneft said Friday that it would fight the court ruling mandating it to release minutes from its board meetings, accusing anti-corruption blogger Alexei Navalny of conspiring against Russia and using the minutes for commercial interests.

Internet Economy Set for 30% Per Year Boom

The Internet economy will see “rapid future growth” in Russia between now and 2015, suggests a newly released report commissioned by Google and prepared by the Boston Consulting Group. But rapid growth is not guaranteed.

MegaFon Focusing on State Orders

The newly merged MegaFon and Sinterra company plans to increase its revenue across different segments by 3.55 billion rubles ($126.9 million) in 2011 and will seek to expand sales to the government sector, representatives of the telecoms giant said Thursday.

New E-Government Portal Starts

State-controlled telecoms giant Rostelecom rolled out a new version of the e-government portal Gosuslugi.ru at the country's biggest telecommunications event of the year, Svyaz-Expocomm, held annually at the Expocenter.

Yandex Warns of Oligarch Takeover

Yandex, the country's most popular Internet search engine, cautioned potential investors about the possibility of a takeover by oligarchs and potential negative influence by the state in its prospectus for an initial public offering on Nasdaq.

Women More Likely to Default on Loans, Study Says

A new Mail.ru study suggests that women are more interested in loan products than men and are more likely to look for ways to avoid returning the money they have borrowed.

Petroleum Exports Banned as Fuel Crisis Deepens

The government banned exports of refined petroleum products Thursday, as the country grapples with fuel shortages in several regions. Officials have reported scenes of "panic" at filling stations in the Tomsk, Belgorod and Voronezh regions in western Russia.

Swedes to Help Create $1Bln Hotline

Sweden's Ericsson will help Russia develop a $1 billion national emergency hotline similar to 112 in European countries, and Russia will waive some visas for Swedes, officials announced as Prime Minister Vladimir Putin paid a visit to Stockholm.

Cisco Will Assemble Boards in Zelenograd

Electronic components assembled for global technology company Cisco Systems began rolling off a Zelenograd assembly line Tuesday as part of the Silicon Valley company's commitment to invest in Russia.

Medvedev Hopes to Teach at Skolkovo One Day

President Dmitry Medvedev reiterated on Monday his desire to see Skolkovo become a new global brand name — possibly in part because he hopes to work there after retiring from the Kremlin.

Glonass Navigation Begins to Take Off

Navigation and Innovation Systems Glonass, a partnership between the Federal Space Agency and AFK Sistema, praised their navigation system at a recent conference, but problems have stalled the growth of the Russian version of GPS.

Innovation Depends On Image and Angels

European venture capitalists think Russia must work to change the perception of being a difficult place for investments in innovation, the secretary of the European Private Equity and Venture Capital Association, Georges Noël, said Tuesday.


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