ALRUD comments on the new trend: Russian companies opt for Asian arbitration

On February 03, 2025 «Expert» published an article «Russian businessmen opt for arbitration in Asia rather than in Europe».

The article deals with a currently topical trend in the Russian business community - the shift of arbitration from European to Asian centers such as HKIAC (Hong Kong) or SIAC (Singapore). It focuses on the reasons of this shift and offers competent opinions of leading Russian and international lawyers.

ALRUD law firm experts specializing in complex international disputes comment on the article. They think that the choice of new arbitration sites is not only due to sanction restrictions but also to flexible procedures, extensive infrastructure, seamless payments and opportunities to attract highly competent experts regardless of EU and US “blacklists”.

Polina Perova, Senior Associate, emphasizes that Hong Kong and Singapore International Arbitration Centres are becoming increasingly popular sites for arbitration disputes involving Russian companies, and they are often included into arbitration clauses of contracts.

Dmitry Kuptsov, Partner in the Dispute Resolution Practice, underlines that the distinct advantage of HKIAC and SIAC is an opportunity for the parties to directly influence the procedure of appointment of a presiding arbitrator which helps to maintain objectivity of the process and to give equal consideration to the interests of all participants.