The withdrawal of Western companies from Russia turned out to be quite profitable for Putin: NYT names sums

Since the beginning of Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine, the Russian budget has received at least $1.25 billion from the withdrawal of Western companies from the country's market. This money helped the Kremlin finance its military aggression. Moscow has taken total control over foreign businesses' attempts to leave the country, and some Western companies have even faced direct threats and asset confiscation.

This is reported by the New York Times. "Putin has turned an expected misfortune into a scheme of enriching himself... He is squeezing the most out of companies by dictating the terms of their withdrawal," the article says.

Thus, according to the rules in force, transactions for the sale of Russian assets to Western companies must be approved by the authorities. And there are several requirements for obtaining such "permission":

• the asset must be sold at a discount of at least 50% of the value determined in the course of the appraisal;
• the company must pay a "voluntary" contribution to the Russian budget: not less than 5% of the market value of the assets if the discount on sale does not exceed 90%, and 10% of the market value if the discount was more than 90% (usually this contribution is paid by the buyer of the assets).

The publication emphasizes that even if the requirements are met, "no deal is safe". For example, in the spring of 2023, beer giant Heineken found a buyer for its Russian business and set a price. However, the Russian government unilaterally rejected the deal and transferred the company's Russian assets to a local aerosol packaging company whose owners are have ties with the government.

It is emphasized that the analysis of documents, financial statements and interviews with business representatives show that Moscow now controls almost every withdrawal from Russia at the micro level. "Companies have to navigate a non-transparent system to get approval to sell. In some cases, Putin's friends have directly asked him to intervene," the NYT reports.

According to the journalists, Western firms are also facing the threat of forceful measures. For example, as the publication has learned, the Russian authorities have already investigated companies leaving its market, interrogated workers and arrested local executives.

"Last summer (2022 - Ed.), Putin seized the Russian division of the Danish brewing company Carlsberg, along with about half a billion dollars in cash, and transferred it to the temporary control of one of his friends. At least four other companies also lost control of their operations this year (2023 - Ed.) due to actual confiscations by the state," the publication notes.

Only verified information is available on OBOZ.UA Telegram channel and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!