Rosneft vs Sistema brings echoes of Yukos affair

For long-term investors in Russia, the nightmare unfolding for the privately held conglomerate Sistema gives them a distinct sense of déjà-vu

Anyone who remembers the dismemberment of Yukos and the capture of its assets more than a decade ago will be feeling the same. Rosneft, again, is at the centre. Assets belonging to Sistema and its ultimate controlling shareholder Vladimir Yevtushenkov are being stripped from the group one by one, while the company has shed R150bn ($2.5bn) in market value since litigation against it began. Russian courts have seized a 32% stake in the mobile operator MTS as well as 90% stake in Bashkir Power Grid Company and 100% of Medsi Group, a national healthcare chain, in a $3bn lawsuit filed by Kremlin-controlled oil producer Rosneft. Today, stocks also dropped 3% on news the court has kept its assets f