The US economist Jeffrey A. Sonnenfeld (68) caused a stir with an extensive list after the Russian attack on Ukraine. He listed that Extent of operations of Western companies in Russia
on. With the division into six different categories, the economist from Yale University wanted to increase the pressure on corporations to say goodbye to the country of Russian warmonger Vladimir Putin as quickly as possible.
But there is now another way of reading this so-called “Sonnenfeld List”: Here, Russian entrepreneurs can quickly and easily get an overview of the areas in which new market opportunities are now opening up for them because Western companies are withdrawing. Most can count on the support of the Kremlin: The Russian dictator Vladimir Putin (69) recently called at an economic forum in St. Petersburg to “fill the gaps that have arisen” and to create their own “national brands”.
An observation made by the sociologist Elisabeth Schimpfössl (42), who specializes in Russian oligarchs in her work: “Because of the war, Western investors are withdrawing massive amounts of money from Russia; we’re talking about several hundred billion dollars. That means resourceful Russian business people that they can buy cheaply,” Schimpfössl reported recently in one Spiegel interview
. A situation reminiscent of the early 1990s.
Resourceful Russian businessmen take advantage of the chaos at home
At that time, Russian entrepreneurs used the chaotic conditions of the transition of the Soviet Union to a market economy to seize former state property, partly through financial skill, but above all through corruption and good political connections, and thereby accumulate enormous private wealth. Numerous Soviet state companies were privatized and properties were sold. Mikhail Khodorkovsky (59), Mikhail Fridman (58) and Vladimir Potanin (61) laid the foundation for their fortunes during this time and later became oligarchs.
This situation could now repeat itself with the exodus of Western companies from Russia. For local entrepreneurs, companies and institutions, there is currently the opportunity to take over valuable assets at a bargain price.
“The takeovers are still isolated cases. But I fear that it could become a general trend and will primarily affect sectors in which the West was strongly represented in Russia,” says Patricia Nacimiento, an expert in international arbitration at the Commercial law firm Herbert Smith Freehills. And it’s not just about purchases: Nacimiento also fears possible expropriations of Western companies in Russia
.
60,000 McDonald’s employees retained
The currently most prominent example of the lucrative filling of gaps is the takeover of 850 McDonald’s branches in Russia. Since the premiere of the American fast food company in Moscow in 1990, the Russian share of the group’s total sales has grown to almost 10 percent – Russians also love fast food. The Siberian entrepreneur and billionaire Alexander Govor (61) has now secured this enormously high business volume after McDonald’s withdrew.
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“If, for example, McDonald’s suddenly closes across the country, the population notices it immediately and the government therefore wants to offer a replacement quickly – that’s what the politicians want,” says Russia expert Nacimiento. So operated Govor, who comes from the oil and mining industry, already has a few McDonalds stores in Siberia, now he has acquired all of the fast-food chain’s other restaurants in the country for an undisclosed amount. Gradually, these are to be reopened under the new name “Wkusno i totschka” (“Delicious and point”), and the approximately 60,000 employees will continue to be employed for at least two years. If Govor manages to get the Russian citizens used to his somewhat puristic-looking burgers and fries, a long-term lucrative business will open up for him.
State takes over Lada shares from Renault for one ruble, Obi gives away its markets
The withdrawal of the car manufacturer is also exemplary for the current development Renault. Renault transferred its majority stake in the Russian Lada manufacturer Avtovaz to the state for a symbolic contribution of one ruble – including the car plants. However, Avtovaz not only has to do without a lot of French know-how, but also has to do without some components that were previously sourced from Western countries – such as airbags, anti-lock braking systems or modern gearboxes. But the Kremlin found the right answer to this challenge: the Russian authorities suspended the ABS requirement for new cars for an initial period of one year.
Also the German home improvement store Obi had already announced her withdrawal from Russia in April – although the markets were a popular meeting place for the Russian middle class, especially on Saturdays. According to the company, all legal entities were “transferred to an investor without paying the purchase price”. to anticipate an expected expropriation
. The 27 Obi stores with almost 5,000 employees were then taken over by the Russian Max Group.
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Lukoil buys Shell gas stations and markets them as Teboil
Another example: Russia’s second-largest oil company Lukoil secured Shell’s petrol station network and a lubricants factory in May. The former Shell petrol stations and the lubricant factory will be continued under the Teboil brand
. “The acquisition of Shell’s high-value businesses in Russia fits well with Lukoil’s strategy to grow its primary distribution channels, including retail, as well as the lubricants business,” said Maxim Donde, a Vice President of Lukoil. For Shell, the sale of Shell Neft to Lukoil is probably the smallest possible evil, as the Russian company will take over the 411 petrol stations and the Torzhok lubricant mixing plant as well as the more than 350 employees.
Leaving Russia in an orderly manner without simply giving up their own employees, factories or facilities is a challenge for many Western companies. The companies did not comment on the sale price. Shell had its in early March Announced withdrawal from Russia and subsequently written off $3.9 billion after tax.
The fact that Shell chose Lukoil as the customer for its business could also be due to the fact that the oil company, unlike its competitor Rosneft, is not state-owned. In March was Lukoil according to the Financial Times
the first company in the country to publicly denounce the war in Ukraine and in a statement on its website
called for a “rapid end to the armed conflict”. The oligarch Vagit Alekperov (71) managed Lukoil up to this point. In April he resigned after 30 years at the top after Western sanctions were imposed on him. Alekperov was deputy oil minister in the Soviet Union and is one of the founders of the state-owned company “LangepasUrajKogalymneft”, which later became Lukoil. The new boss of the company is Vadim Vorobyev (61), who has worked at Lukoil for 25 years and has already headed six different companies, including Norsi Oil OJSC.
Vladimir Potanin secures Rosbank
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Closely related: Vladimir Potanin helped Vladimir Putin steal from the Russian people. Now the Kremlin boss is taking revenge
Photo:
Dmitry Azarov / DDP images
But old Putin friends are also benefiting greatly from the migration of Western companies and using this to amass more wealth. This includes the Russian oligarch Vladimir Potanin. Through his holding company Interros Capital, he acquired Bank Rosbank, the Russian subsidiary of the major French bank Société Générale (SocGen) and its insurance business for an undisclosed sum.
Potanin is the largest shareholder in the nickel group Norilsk Nickel and, according to Forbes magazine, has assets of around $17.3 billion. His rise began in the Ministry of Foreign Trade of the former Soviet Union. In Canada and Great Britain is the sixty-one year old with sanctions
has been documented, but it is not on the sanctions lists in the rest of Europe and the United States. For SocGen, the sale to Potanin is a loss-making business: According to the bank, it has to write off around two billion euros.
The auditors are also retiring
The world’s four largest accounting and consulting firms have also severed ties with Russia. the major accountants act as global networks of local firms, which belong to the local partners. In three cases, the Russian unit has already been renamed. PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (PwC) announced that the successor to its Russian subsidiary will be called Technologies of Trust. “While it can take years to build trust and develop an impeccable reputation, it can be eroded overnight,” says Technologies of Trust. PwC made no further comment.
Deloitte’s former Russian company will be called Business Solutions and Technologies, according to a May 18 filing by one of Russia’s top customers, mobile operator MTS. EY’s former Russian unit has been relaunched under the name Audit Technologies and Solutions Center – Audit Services, according to its website. KPMG announced in March that its 4,500 partners and employees in Russia and Belarus will leave the KPMG network. “All formal aspects of interaction are worked out individually with each client,” it said on March 7, without saying whether the company would restart under Russian leadership.