Western banks in Russia paid 800 million euros in taxes to the Kremlin last year. Raiffeisen Bank accounts for more than half, which is a fourfold increase compared to the pre-war situation.

The biggest Western banks that remain in Russia paid more than 800 million euros in taxes to the Kremlin last year. This is a fourfold increase over the pre-war situation. And this despite promises to minimize their business in the country after Russia’s open invasion of Ukraine.

The seven European banks with the largest assets in Russia – Raiffeisen Bank International, UniCredit, ING, Commerzbank, Deutsche Bank, Intesa Sanpaolo and OTP – reported a total profit exceeding three billion euros in 2023.

Because of the surge in profitability, European banks paid around €800 million in taxes, compared to €200 million in 2021, according to a Financial Times analysis. Added to this were the profits of American financial houses such as Citigroup and JPMorgan.

The taxes paid by European banks, equal to around 0.4% of all expected non-energy budget revenue in Russia in 2024, are an example of how foreign companies staying in the country are helping the Kremlin maintain financial stability despite Western sanctions.

Foreign lenders profited not only from higher interest rates, but also from international sanctions imposed on Russian banks. These measures deprived their competitors of access to international payment systems and increased the attractiveness of Western banks themselves for clients in the country.

More than half of the 800 million euros that European banks paid in taxes goes to the Austrian Raiffeisen Bank International (RBI), which has the largest presence in Russia among foreign financial houses.

Source: https://denikn.cz/1414442/zapadni-banky-v-rusku-loni-zaplatily-kremlu-na-danich-800-milionu-eur-vice-nez-polovina-pripada-raiffeisen-bank/?ref=tit1