In October 2024, Italian luxury clothing and footwear brand Moncler, along with 10 other global companies, completed their withdrawal from the Russian market by either selling or liquidating their operations, according to monitoring by the Kyiv School of Economics (KSE). We urge all companies still operating in Russia to follow suit. Over 2,000 foreign firms remain in the market, yet only 440 have fully exited.
The most recent cases of completed exits involve the Finnish lock manufacturer Abloy, the Japanese packaging equipment manufacturer Ishida, the Norwegian maritime automation company Kongsberg Maritime, the French fastening solutions manufacturer A. Raymond Group, the Italian transportation infrastructure manager ANAS, the German automotive and engineering manufacturer Benteler International, the French engineering software developer GRAITEC, the Italian automotive parts manufacturer Magneti Marelli, the Austrian insurance company UNIQA, and the British-Dutch consumer goods giant Unilever.
According to estimates from the KSE, foreign companies operating in Russia could have contributed $20 billion in tax revenue annually to Russia’s fully militarized economy during the 2022-2023 period.
Those remaining not only provide a financial lifeline to the Kremlin but are also obliged to assist the Russian state with the mobilization of eligible employees and the provision of material support deemed crucial for its war effort.
We urge companies to exit Russia responsibly to avoid the expanding range of legal, operational, and financial risks inherent in doing business there. It has been proven that withdrawal is possible, even nearly three years into this genocidal war.