Amsterdam & Partners LLP denounced the Government of Uzbekistan at a press conference in London, warning that foreign investment in the country cannot be considered safe amid the escalating criminal persecution of those behind fintech platform Solfy.

The warning was delivered days before United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio is due in Uzbekistan at the head of a delegation drawn from more than one hundred American companies.

Arrests linked to a commercial dispute with a state-owned bank

Andrei Basuyev, a Belarusian citizen and General Director of Solfy RUS LLC, was detained at Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport in the early hours of Monday, October 12, pursuant to an interstate wanted notice initiated by Uzbekistan. The Uzbek authorities accuse him of misappropriation or embezzlement, fraud, and intentional insolvency. No court has ruled on the merits of those accusations, and no extradition has been ordered.

Basuyev is a business partner of Amsterdam & Partners client Maksim Poletaev. Solfy's director in Uzbekistan, Uktam Xasanov, has remained in detention since March 2026. The underlying dispute in both cases is contractual: a consumer credit partnership between Solfy and the National Bank of Uzbekistan, a state-owned institution, which the bank entered into and then abandoned.

The following table summarises the key details of both detentions:

ICSID arbitration and the timeline of the wanted notice

Amsterdam & Partners, on behalf of Poletaev and Solfy RUS LLC, has brought proceedings against Uzbekistan before the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), and has sought provisional measures to prevent further escalation against individuals connected to the investment. The Uzbek decision to place Basuyev on an interstate wanted list is dated September 25, 2026, within days of the registration of that arbitration claim.

Press conference and parliamentary engagement

Amsterdam & Partners Founder and Managing Partner Robert Amsterdam was joined at the London press conference by William Burke-White, Professor of Law at the University of Pennsylvania and advisor to the United States Department of State, who presented the Russian documentary record of the arrest. Israr Khan, Senior Associate at the firm, set out the history of the Solfy investment and the arbitration. The press conference was followed by a lunch in the House of Commons attended by members of Parliament.

Firm's demands and investor warning

Amsterdam & Partners called on Uzbekistan to take the following steps:

• Release Xasanov from detention
• Withdraw its international detention and extradition efforts against Basuyev
• End pressure on individuals connected to Solfy
• Engage responsibly with the ICSID proceedings
• Protect Basuyev's due process rights and allow scrutiny of the extradition request before any transfer takes place

Robert Amsterdam stated that foreign investment is only as secure as the remedy available when a dispute arises, and that in Uzbekistan, the remedy for the investor has taken the form of detention. The firm noted that the Uzbek criminal process has reached beyond Uzbekistan and into Moscow, meaning a businessman from a third country faces loss of liberty outside the country where the investment was made.

Amsterdam & Partners LLP has submitted a petition to the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention on behalf of Uktam Xasanov, CEO of fintech platform Solfy Uzbekistan, arguing that his arrest and continued detention violate international law and Uzbekistan’s domestic legal obligations. The firm asserts the detention is based on a discriminatory assessment of his position as a local director of a foreign company, rather than legitimate criminal evidence. Mr. Xasanov, an Uzbek national, was arrested in March 2026 amid a dispute with the National Bank for Foreign Economic Activity of the Republic of Uzbekistan (NBU).

The submission highlights procedural irregularities, noting that a mandatory audit under Uzbek law was finalized only after Mr. Xasanov had been arrested, charged, and detained for three days. The audit did not substantiate the allegations against him. The filing also points to the close familial relationship between the Chairman of NBU and the Deputy Prosecutor of Tashkent, raising concerns about the impartiality of the proceedings.

Conditions of detention are described as incompatible with domestic law and international standards, including the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (the Nelson Mandela Rules). Nearly three months after his arrest, Mr. Xasanov has been denied family visits, telephone communication, and is permitted only censored correspondence. The petition contends the Tashkent court failed to consider less restrictive alternatives to pre-trial detention as required by law.

The firm argues the use of state administrative and criminal powers in a dispute between a state-owned institution and an international investor violates specific protections for entrepreneurial activity in Uzbek law. The petition was filed shortly after the Tashkent International Investment Forum, where Uzbekistan promoted itself as a safe investment destination. Amsterdam & Partners LLP believes Mr. Xasanov’s imprisonment is being used as leverage in the Solfy-NBU dispute.

Robert Amsterdam, Founder and Managing Partner of Amsterdam & Partners LLP, stated that discriminatory prosecution and detention should never be used as leverage in a commercial dispute. He emphasized that Mr. Xasanov has spent months in detention despite the lack of legal basis for the charges and the fundamentally commercial nature of the underlying dispute. The firm calls for his immediate release to ensure his safety and prevent further escalation.