Russia’s President Vladimir Putin has given his approval for Goldman Sachs to leave the country. This means that Goldman Sachs can sell its business in Russia to a company called Balchug Capital, which is based in Armenia.
Goldman Sachs had made a deal with Balchug Capital to sell its Russian subsidiary. This makes it one of the few Western banks to completely leave Russia. Other Western banks are still operating in the country.
Recently, Putin has allowed other foreign banks to make deals and leave Russia. For example, French bank Natixis was able to sell its Russian operations last month. Also, a Dutch bank called ING Groep NV agreed to sell its Russian assets this month.
Despite promises to leave, many Western banks are still operating in Russia. One of these banks, Citigroup Inc., has stopped most corporate banking services in Russia but still has $9 billion worth of assets there.
The biggest Western banks that operate in Russia paid €800 million (or about $857 million) in taxes last year. This is four times more than they paid before the invasion of Ukraine three years ago.
After the invasion, Russia’s banking sector suffered from strict sanctions imposed by Western countries. As a result, profits dropped by 90% in 2022. However, Putin’s government has since taken steps to stabilize the industry and increase state control over it.
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