Over three years of full-scale war in Ukraine, 62% of companies from "unfriendly" countries have left Russia. This is according to data from the audit and consulting firm Kept, published by RBC.
The sample includes more than 300 foreign companies with "significant assets" in Russia and revenue of at least 1 billion rubles. By the end of 2024, 183 of them had completed their exit from the Russian market. Most sold their assets to Russian businesses (103 cases) or local management (40 cases). In 17 cases, foreigners exited joint ventures with Russian partners, and in 14 cases, they closed their business or suspended operations. Nine exit deals were made with foreign buyers.
Companies from Northern Europe most frequently made the decision to exit the Russian market, with 94% of their decisions in the Kept sample involving exits, and a total of 45 transactions. For example, all 20 Finnish companies in the sample left Russia. Thirteen out of fifteen Swedish companies also left, with two asset deals still in progress. Norway and Iceland had 100% of their companies exit. Denmark follows with 74% completed exits. Among companies from the US, Germany, France, and the UK, 59–67% of the companies in the Kept sample exited Russia. Canada, Australia, and New Zealand had the highest exit rates, at 100%. The smallest exit percentages were from Austria (50%), Switzerland (38%), Italy (22%), and Belgium.
For 96 foreign companies—about a third of the entire sample analyzed by Kept—there is no information about their exit from Russia. Most of these continue their normal operations. Another 19 companies are in the process of exiting, and seven foreign assets have been transferred under state control. Among them are, for example, the joint venture of the brewing companies AB InBev (USA, Belgium) and Efes (Turkey), the Russian business of home appliance manufacturer Ariston (Italy), and the agricultural company Agroterra from NCH Capital (USA).
According to Kept's calculations, the share of companies in the sample that left the Russian market increased from 55% in 2023 to 62% in 2024. Meanwhile, the share of companies that made the decision to exit grew from 64% to 68.5%. Six percent of companies are in the process of selling their business.
"The fate of these deals will largely depend on the further development of the geopolitical situation and changes in the sanctions and counter-sanctions regime," noted Kept.
