Blacklisted: the Man Who Asked Awkward Questions

William Browder, head of London-based Hermitage Capital Management, is all too familiar with the pitfalls of doing business in Russia. He has been barred from entering the country since 2005 after calling for higher standards of corporate governance at Gazprom, where he owned shares. He spoke out about minority shareholder rights and, say some, raised questions with officials about payments to bureaucrats and their business accomplices.

The grandson of Earl Browder, former leader of the US Communist Party, at one time he managed the Russian proprietary desk of Salomon Brothers and worked on the East European desk of Boston Consulting at their London offices.

Browder grew wealthy in Russia, where he amassed stakes in what proved to be significantly undervalued companies, but angered Vladimir Putin by his activities at Gazprom, as well as attempts to expose corruption and corporate malfeasance. This year, Russian authorities charged one of Hermitage's executives with tax evasion in what observers said was a further sign of a clampdown on foreign investors, especially in the energy sector. At the time, a Hermitage spokesman said the police were involved in a plan to alter the ownership of companies linked to Browder's fund, which has been shifting its focus away from Russia, investing instead in Asia, South America and the Middle East.

Hermitage also claimed it was the victim of an attempted fraud and theft of hundreds of millions of dollars by individuals connected to the interior ministry. HSBC, the trustee of Hermitage Fund, has filed criminal complaints in Russia about the affair, but little action has been taken.

Analysts in London say he is being used a warning to others who seek to introduce Western standards of corporate governance. The Hermitage website calls Browder a leading shareholder rights activist and outspoken fighter for better governance in Russia. He has been credited with a number of breakthroughs in improving standards at major Russian companies.