Since the onset of the full-scale invasion, more than 1,300 international companies have reduced or suspended their operations in Russia. A study by the KSE Institute, titled Assessing foreign companies' direct losses in Russia: financial impact, market consequences, and strategic adjustments, reveals that foreign businesses have incurred losses exceeding $170 billion.
The majority of these losses—over $167 billion—are attributed to asset write-offs. More than $57 billion of these losses resulted from Russian authorities seizing assets and transferring them to local businesses or state-controlled entities, despite the assets being valued at approximately $74 billion before expropriation. Additionally, companies were obligated to pay at least $3 billion in "exit taxes," a fee that became compulsory for asset sales, with a sharp rise in 2023.
The countries most impacted include the United States ($46 billion), Germany ($44.5 billion), the United Kingdom ($35.1 billion), France ($12.1 billion), Austria ($6.7 billion), and Finland ($5.1 billion).
Notable losses include British Petroleum (BP), which wrote off $25.5 billion after exiting its investment in Rosneft, the nationalization of Uniper ($22 billion) and Fortum ($4.07 billion), ExxonMobil’s $4 billion loss, Renault’s forced sale of its Russian operations ($2.4 billion), and Société Générale’s $3.3 billion exit from Rosbank.
Many foreign assets in Russia were sold at steep discounts, with some reaching 90-100% below their market value. Russian state-backed entities and business groups took advantage of these circumstances, acquiring foreign assets at minimal prices.
Economic pressure mechanisms have been systematically employed by Russia. At least 30 companies, including Carlsberg, Danone, and ExxonMobil, have had their assets forcibly seized.
Exit taxes amounted to $1.2 billion in 2023, with an additional $1.5 billion paid by July 2024. Overall, companies have paid more than $3 billion in taxes tied to their forced departure. Often, these exits were accompanied by the freezing of profits and the transfer of assets to Russian-controlled organizations.
The Energy sector has faced the largest losses, with BP, ExxonMobil, Fortum, TotalEnergies, and Uniper writing off over $60 billion. In the Automotive industry, Renault lost $2.4 billion, while Volkswagen and Nissan also sustained notable losses. In the finance sector, Société Générale recorded a $3.3 billion loss, with UniCredit and Raiffeisen Bank facing major lawsuits and asset devaluation.
In Consumer goods, companies like McDonald’s, Nestlé, Unilever, Danone, and Carlsberg either exited Russia or sold their assets for a fraction of their original value.
By early March 2025, 481 companies had fully exited Russia. An additional 1,357 are in the process of scaling down or leaving, while over 2,260 companies remain in the market, continuing operations and paying taxes to the Russian government.
The KSE Institute's findings show that Russia's economic isolation has deepened as international companies depart. Foreign investment has sharply declined, and the country's economy has become more reliant on state control and Chinese investments.
