Magnús Þorsteinsson

Magnús Þorsteinsson is a businessman and was chairman of now defunct Avion Group. He was a high-profile investor and entrepreneur with interests in aviation and financial services.

Beverage businessman in Saint Petersburg Magnús began his investments in St. Petersburg together with Björgólfur Guðmundsson and Björgólfur Thor Björgólfsson.

The Icelandic businessmen, together with Russian partners, founded a bottling company Baltic Bottling Plant in Saint Petersburg in June 1993 which was sold to Pepsi for 4 billion DKK in 1997. The three businessmen were among the first clients of the attorney Jeffrey Galmond in Saint Petersburg. Bravo Brewery became a success on the premium beer Botchkarov.

Danish journalists noted that the Committee on External Economic Relations in the Mayor's office was responsible for foreigners in Saint Petersburg. The committee's chairman was Vladimir Putin who had approved more than 9000 joint ventures.

In 2005 an article in The Guardian wondered where the Icelandic money comes from and noted that in the 1990s these Icelandic businessmen "were not only ploughing money into the country but doing it in the city regarded as the Russian mafia capital. That investment was being made in the drinks sector, seen by the mafia as the industry of choice." Competitors in the Saint Petersburg brewing market faced problems. Ilya Weismann, deputy director of a competing beverage company Baltic, was assassinated on 10 January 2000.

Consul of Russia In 2000, Saint Petersburg opened an honorary consulate in Iceland. Thor Bjorgolfsson was appointed Consul and Magnus Thorsteinsson was appointed Honorary Vice-Consul.