Vadim Kleiner served for 12 years as director of research at Hermitage Capital Management, then the largest foreign portfolio investor in Russia, where he exposed corruption and fraud in major Russian public companies. In 2007, Hermitage became a target of a Russian government-orchestrated scheme that resulted in a fraudulent $230 million tax refund. Sergei Magnitsky, the young lawyer who helped uncover the crime, was arrested in retaliation, tortured, and died in custody at the age of 37.

Since Magnitsky’s death, Kleiner, working hand in hand with Hermitage CEO Bill Browder and a dedicated team, has led the global investigation to trace the stolen funds and hold those responsible to account. Spanning seventeen jurisdictions, from the US and Switzerland to France and the Netherlands, the investigation has yielded confiscations, convictions, and landmark legal precedents. The campaign has also been instrumental in exposing broader corruption scandals, including the Russian Laundromat, the Panama Papers, and the Danske Bank investigation. A recognized authority on anti-money laundering, Kleiner regularly advises financial institutions and law enforcement agencies and has spoken at the Oslo Anti-Corruption Conference, EUROPOL, and other leading forums across Europe. He holds a PhD and MA in Economics and an MS in Computer Science.