Michael Calvey Biography

Michael (Mike) Calvey is a pioneering US-born financier who made his fortune in post-Communist Russia but ended up unjustly incarcerated in the country’s most notorious prison. He was a founder and Co-Senior Partner of Baring Vostok, the largest private equity firm in Russia, Kazakhstan and other post-Soviet nations, from 1994 to 2022. Baring Vostok was a lead investor in some of the best-performing companies across global emerging markets funds – including Yandex, Kaspi, Tinkoff, Ozon, CTC Media and Burren Energy – earning strong investor returns while contributing enormously to post-Communist Russia’s growing prosperity. But beyond his commercial success, he immersed himself in the Russian way of life, living for almost thirty years in Moscow, learning the language, marrying a Russian woman and forging an unmatched network of personal connections.

Then, in 2019, Mike was arrested on charges trumped up by local business rivals and thrown into the notorious Mattrosskaya Tishina prison. The story of his incarceration and prosecution garnered headlines across the world. Now, he tells his side of the story for the first time. Drawing on notes and diaries he kept at the time, this is his account of three extraordinary years, providing not only a reflection on how his own life was turned upside down, but giving an insider’s glimpse into Putin’s secretive justice system at a pivotal moment in modern Russia’s relationship with the West. Using his analytical skills, the author recounts the roller-coaster of his experiences with composure, informed by his understanding of the geopolitical fault lines. It is a story he alone can tell. 

Today, Mike Calvey serves as Chairman of Baring Ventures, a private investment firm advising private equity funds with assets of approximately $5.5 billion. In addition, he sits on the Advisory Boards of Harvard University’s Davis Center and Georgetown University’s Center for Eurasian, Russian and East European Studies. A US citizen, he now divides his time between Switzerland and the UK.