I represent an investment fund that was targeting investments in SME’s in Kyrgyzstan and selected former Soviet Republics. Our story started in 2008 when we met Nurgazy Nurgaziev, a Kyrgyz businessman. After many meetings, in 2008 we invested in OcOO Trilight....

I get asked quite often how I met Nurgazy Nurgaziev. Way back in 2008, a contact of mine introduced me to Mr. T. He was Nurgazy’s school mate. Mr. T mentioned that Nurgazy owned a bakery business and would be interested to discuss potential investment opportunities. I...

Namali’s financial information indicated that they were perhaps not complying with all laws. It seems taxes were not being fully paid. As I wrote in the previous article, I explained to Nurgazy why we could not invest in such businesses. He understood and we found a...

The ‘break-up’ came as a total surprise. It was totally unexpected. Before we invested, Nurgazy always referred to Mr. A as his brother and best friend. He portrayed the image that they were very close. They were inseparable. One day Nurgazy called and said he needed...

After Nurgazy and Mr. A split, Nurgazy asked if investing in his new business was an option. Since we had already spent so much time analysing the business and the industry, we decided to look into it. We agreed to buy 45% of the business for US$110.000. Fifty percent...

It is a challenge for Kyrgyz companies to attract foreign investors. Kyrgyzstan is not perceived as an attractive investment destination. Companies may not be managed to a standard that meets the expectations of foreign investors. To make Trilight more appealing to...

We signed the investment agreement in mid-September and paid 50% of the investment amount. It came as a total shock when Nurgazy asked for a loan of $100,000 the same month. I was not expecting this. On October 1, 2008, I wrote to him, explaining why asking for a loan...

A couple of months after we invested, I invited representatives from Helvetas and Hivos to visit the factory at Kirgshelk. The purpose of the meeting was to show them what we were doing and present our plans for the future. This included Trilight supporting local...

Soon after Nurgazy received the investment from us, he went shopping! Nurgazy showed me some of the things that he bought. These included: A hunting rifle that be bought for $2,000. If I recall correctly, the rifle was made in Finland A small shop that he bought for...

Couple of months after we invested, we received our first ‘payment’ of 85.000 soms in December 2008. I say ‘payment’ because when we got it, it was a dividend. It could not be anything else, we are shareholders. Later Nurgazy said it was not a dividend but a return of...

Before we invested, we spent many months discussing and negotiating. Once we agreed to invest, we spent a lot of time drafting and negotiating the agreement. A lot of time and effort went into the process. When problems started so soon after we invested, it surprised...

As discussed in the previous post, Nurgazy’s Offer: It is not a Joke, Nurgazy made three offers regarding our shares. We could not accept any of his offers, it was unreasonable. And he was not willing to work according to the agreement. One option was for us to make...

After we invested, problems started. We tried hard to find solutions. One solution included Nurgazy buying our shares. When that did not work, we tried to buy his shares. To buy or sell shares, we need financial information. Nurgazy was hesitant to provide financial...

We invested and had lots of problems. Negotiations did not work. We considered selling our shares to Nurgazy. That did not work. We tried to buy his shares. We needed financial information. Nurgazy told us that he will provide financial information after we make an...

Were we given falsified financial information? This is discussed in: Did Someone Change the Financials? Part 1 and Did Someone Change the Financials? Part 2. I suspect we were not the only ones provided with potentially falsified financial information. Kyrgyz Tax...

And it failed. Of course. Taking legal action was not the preferred option, especially in countries with a high level of corruption and weak legal system. Resolving the situation through discussions was preferred. After lots of discussions and meetings, the only...

Our investment woes continue. Discussions to solve the problem did not work. Requests for holding emergency General Meeting was ignored, even though the law requires the meeting to be held. Request for financial information, participation in management and share in...

We decided to take out first legal action. We called an emergency general meeting, in accordance with the law. Nurgazy Nurgaziev did not attend, even though it is required by law. We then sought assistance from the Prime Minister’s office. Prime Minister’s office did...

The previous article discussed how the Trilight investigations was closed even before it was fully investigated. A new Prime Minister got elected. He considered the Financial Police to be corrupt and ineffective. He decided to shut down Financial Police. And our case...

Previously we discussed how GSBEP closed investigations into our case and did not provide detailed reasons. We asked Prime Minister’s office for assistance. They twice wrote to GSBEP asking for detailed reasons, but they did not receive it. What can be done in this...

The previous article discusses the efforts we went through to get our case reinvestigated by GSBEP (Financial Police). But, as with every previous investigations, this investigation was closed. Since then, a new development took place. Investment Promotion Agency was...

As discussed in previous articles, Financial Police and its successor, State Service for Combating Economic Crimes (GSPEB) investigated our case and closed investigations 4 times. We gave up on getting any results from GSBEP and focused our attention on getting help...

Our goal of investing in Trilight was to help it to grow, attract foreign investors and partners and eventually invest in other businesses. After investing, we started discussions with foreign companies and investors. We met many industry leading companies in...

Our problems with Trilight started way back in 2009. Problems started soon after we invested. Investor related problems are nothing new, in Kyrgyzstan and elsewhere. How are problems solved? Negotiation and mediation is probably the starting point. But this works if...

This is our story. In 2009 our investment fund bought 45% of OcOO Trilight. The other 55% is owned by Nurgazy Nurgaziev. Problems started soon after we invested. Financial Police and its successor, State Service for Combating Economic Crimes (GSPEB) opened and closed...

In 2008, we took a leap of faith and invested in Kyrgyzstan. Little did we know that challenges awaited us. We faced more problems than a mathematician solving an unsolvable equation. We did not back down from a challenge! We decided to get things sorted. The...

“you are number three on that list after a bank and private loans. This month (october) I had a a sergey [surgery] that was very expansive [expensive]. That's why couldn't pay you. by the end of november will be the payment and i will give it to A***** or whoever...

Our story, we invested in Kyrgyzstan and faced problems soon afterwards. Negotiations and discussions to solve the problem failed. It became clear that Nurgazy Nurgaziev, the local shareholder, wanted more money. Giving more money would have solved the problem,...

I often hear people saying ‘our government is corrupt’ or ‘our officials are corrupt’. I do not fully agree with such statements. Corruption is dishonest behavior by those in positions of power, such as managers or government officials, according to Investopedia....

After we made our first investment in Kyrgyzstan, we faced many problems. Let me mention the most important ones. You can read more about our story here. Before we invested, Nurgazy Nurgaziev did business with another local partner under the name "Namali". Our initial...

We invested in Kyrgyzstan and faced many problems. You can read a summary of our problems here. When our problems started, we tried negotiating with Nurgazy Nurgaziev, the local partner. It did not work. His demands were unreasonable, and getting more unreasonable...

This is our story. We started an investment fund based in Sweden/Hong Kong. In 2009 we made our first investment in Kyrgyzstan. We own 45% of OcOO Trilight. The other 55% is owned by Nurgazy Nurgaziev. Problems started soon after we invested. Financial Police and its...