Belarusian who created "Halva" card detained in Russia. He allegedly misappropriated $100 million
Andrei Basuyev, the creator of the "Halva" card, has been detained in Russia. In Uzbekistan, he is accused of allegedly misappropriating $100 million from investors, writes "Belarusy i rynok" publication.

Basuyev was detained at Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport. According to media reports, Uzbek authorities had placed him on an international wanted list.
Andrei Basuyev once launched the "Halva" payment card in the Belarusian market through MTBank, and in the Russian market through Sovcombank. After leaving Sovcombank, to whom the new owner of MTBank, Aliaksei Aleksin, sold the "Halva" idea, Basuyev headed the Solfy installment platform in Uzbekistan. From the early 2020s, he developed it in partnership with the country's largest bank, the state-owned UzbNatsbank.
Now, the company Solfy RUS and investor Maxim Polyutaev are demanding 8.3 billion Russian rubles (approximately $98.96 million) from Uzbekistan through international arbitration at the World Bank. The lawsuit was registered on September 23. Investors refer to the agreement between Russia and Uzbekistan on the protection of investments.
According to media reports, the conflict began after the partnership between Solfy and UzbNatsbank escalated into mutual claims. In 2024 and 2025, Tashkent courts ordered the company to pay the bank a total of 21.32 billion Uzbek sums (about $1.78 million) in debt and penalties.
In March 2026, law enforcement officers detained the head of Solfy's local division, Uktam Khasanov, as part of a criminal case. Investors regard this as pressure and have appealed to arbitration asking for his release.
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