Russia Singled Out for Praise in Latest World Bank Doing Business Report

London, United Kingdom, November 20, 2013 --(PR.com)-- The 2014 edition of the World Bank Doing Business report has cited Russia as one "among the most improved" economies over the past year.

With the report now in its 11th year, Doing Business 2014: Understanding Regulations for Small and Medium-Size Enterprises analyses the impact of regulations throughout the business lifecycle across 189 jurisdictions, ranking economies on the basis of 10 indicators including ease of starting a business, and paying taxes. Russell Bedford member firms have contributed to each of the report’s Paying Taxes survey since 2009, contributing data on tax regulation, recent reforms, and the real costs of tax compliance worldwide.

While still some way from the Putin-imposed target of reaching the top 20 by 2018, Russia is, nonetheless, up a massive 19 places and now well inside the top 100 best global business environments, at 88th. The country also shows consistent improvements across the board, improving its rankings for dealing with construction permits, cross-border trade, and ease of paying taxes. It has also shown spectacular improvement in property registration (up 29 places to 17th) suggesting it is now easier to register property in Russia than in France, Germany, Ireland, the UK and the United States.

Igor Fedorov, managing director of Russell Bedford member firm Mikhailov & Partners commented: "This year's Doing Business report testifies to the continued improvements in Russia's regulatory environment undertaken over the past decade. While there are clearly no grounds for complacency, it is gratifying to see the country take its rightful place among some of the world's leading economies, and we are delighted to continue to assist the World Bank in compiling the report."

Notes for Editors

For more information about the World Bank's Doing Business reports, please visit www.doingbusiness.org

About Russell Bedford International

Established in 1983, Russell Bedford International is a global network of independent firms of accountants, auditors, tax advisers and business consultants. Ranked amongst the world’s leading accounting and audit networks, Russell Bedford is represented by some 460 partners, 5000 staff and 280 offices in more than 90 countries in Europe, the Americas, the Middle East, Africa and Asia-Pacific. Russell Bedford International is a member of the IFAC Forum of Firms and a member of EGIAN, the European Group of International Accounting Networks and Associations.

Contacts:

Kempton Bedell-Harper
Russell Bedford International
T: +44 20 7410 0339
E: info@russellbedford.com
W: www.russellbedford.com

Igor Fedorov
Mikhailov & Partners
T: +7 495 945 4463 / 4464
E: fedorov@mnp.ru / projects@mnp.ru
W: www.mnp.ru