Putin Signs Decree Authorising UniCredit Partial Divestment of Russian Assets

By Сергiй Дубина

Published on 06/10/2026 – 12:06 GMT+2

On Monday, Russian President Vladimir Putin issued a decree permitting Italian banking group UniCredit to divest a portion of its Russian operations, opening the door for the Milan-headquartered firm to reduce its footprint in the country.

The bank has maintained a presence in the Russian Federation since 1989 and continued its operations following the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

In May, the lender disclosed intentions to transfer a segment of its Russian subsidiary to an established private investor based in the United Arab Emirates, described as having enduring connections with the local institutional and business sectors, while keeping a portion tied to payment services.

According to prior reporting from Kommersant, the prospective buyer represents Alfa Group, a major conglomerate trusted by the Kremlin. One of its co-founders, Mikhail Fridman, was recently removed from the European Union’s sanctions list.

The presidential order explicitly allows for the “reorganisation” of the entity in Russia, involving the spin-off of part of UniCredit Bank’s Russian legal entity into a new company that will remain held by the Italian parent group.

Under the terms of the decree, the Italian group is authorized to sell 100% of its shares in the Russian UniCredit Bank entity.

The retained “new bank” will remain under Italian ownership, focusing on international euro and dollar payments for corporate clients outside of sanctions regimes.

The remainder of the business will transfer to the purchaser, whose identity UniCredit has not yet revealed.

The Italian group estimates the financial cost of the transaction at between €3 billion and €3.3 billion.

UniCredit stated in May that it anticipates closing the deal in the first half of 2027, pending binding agreements, business separation, and regulatory consent.

Conditions for leaving Russia

According to RFE/RL, the deal would not have been possible without the personal approval of the Russian president. Since 2022, special measures regarding “unfriendly” countries have placed UniCredit Bank on a list of lenders requiring special authorization for share transactions.

In 2025, the Central Bank of Russia published a list of systemically important credit institutions, which included 12 lenders, UniCredit and Raiffeisenbank among them.

This designation occurred amid pressure from the European Central Bank for both banks to shrink their Russian operations, alongside their own statements confirming they were winding down activities in the country.

Alongside these two Western “systemic” banks, Italy’s Intesa Sanpaolo continues limited operations in Russia via its corporate banking arm, having received presidential exit approval in September 2023 without completing its departure. Hungary’s OTP Bank similarly continues operating through its Russian subsidiary.

Beyond the requirement for Kremlin approval to exit, conditions became significantly stricter in October 2024. According to UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD), affected foreign asset sales must involve a discount of at least 60% below market value, plus an additional exit tax of no less than 35%.

Responding to repeated demands from European authorities to exit Russia, UniCredit maintained that withdrawal was impossible without the Kremlin’s green light. CEO Andrea Orcel had repeatedly stated the bank was unwilling to dispose of its Russian assets at heavily discounted prices, according to Kommersant.

Since the onset of the full-scale invasion, hundreds of foreign companies have either fully withdrawn from Russia or significantly scaled back their activities.

The fate of those that remained has not always been straightforward.

One instance occurred on 17 September, when Putin signed an order transferring management of assets tied to 16 companies, including Nestlé and Auchan, to an obscure firm, L.E.V. Management, which was later linked to Russia’s security services.

A further case emerged on 28 September, when German wholesaler Metro AG lost operational control of its Russian subsidiary via a presidential decree, passing control to UK Torg RUS while ownership remained with the German group.

When asked whether the Russian subsidiaries of UniCredit or Austria’s Raiffeisen might face similar measures, an unnamed senior Russian government source told Reuters: “Let them be scared.”

Source link