The rule of law still has a way to go in Ukraine. According to Kyiv Post, the number of illegal corporate seizures spiked last year, with 2500 attacks logged by “corporate raiders.” These attacks took many forms, including “pressuring single shareholders, bribing managers and officials, creating artificial debts, falsifying the statutory and other documents, and the forcible takeover of facilities with the support of law enforcement groups and private security firms.”

Such takeovers aren’t confined to the realms of business and finance — the same tactics are creeping into the political realm as well.

This is very disheartening. The free market thrives on risk-taking and trust. Both of these require certainty that contracts are enforced and property is sacrosanct.