Russia took over billions of Raiffeisen. Deripaska at the head of the dispute
The Russian Bank took over EUR 1.87 billion from the Raiffeisen account. This is the result of a court decision regarding a dispute with a company related to Oleg Deripaska.
The Russian Bank took over EUR 1.87 billion from the Raiffeisen Bank International (RBI) account in Russia. These funds were occupied on the basis of a court judgment, which obliged the Russian branch of the Austrian bank to pay compensation to Rasperia. This company has connections with the Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska, covered by the sanctions of the West.
Presence on the Russian market
Raiffeisen Bank, through its presence on the Russian market, played a key role in providing access to foreign currencies for the Russian economy. During the first nine months of 2024, his Russian branch generated a profit exceeding $ 1 billion, which constituted almost half of the group’s total profits. At the same time, the bank paid EUR 277 million in taxes for the Russian state budget.
The court in Königsberg ruled that RBI should pay rasperia over EUR 2 billion compensation. The case concerns an unsuccessful transaction from 2023, when Raiffeisen wanted to redeem from Rasperia in the Austrian construction company Strabag. These shares were previously related to Deripaska, and the bank’s withdrawal from the contract took place after pressure from the United States. American services were afraid that Deripaska would benefit from this transaction, which could violate sanctions.
Court decision
After breaking the agreement, the US Department of the Treasury introduced sanctions against companies related to Deripaska. The oligarch himself repeatedly denied any relationships. Rasperia filed a lawsuit and in January the court issued a judgment in her favor. The appeal did not change and the decision was maintained.
As a result of these events, Raiffeisenbank lost almost half of 4.4 billion assets located in Russia. These funds cannot be transferred to Austria due to the binding ban on capital transfer introduced by the Russian Central Bank.
The RBI group announced the submission of another appeal and preparing a separate lawsuit against Rasperia, which is to be sent to court in Austria in the second quarter of 2025.
