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Playrix fully withdraws from Russia and Belarus, keeps operating in Ukraine

October 30, 2022

Playrix today announced it is fully withdrawing from Russia and Belarus, “due to the continued aggression against Ukraine and in order to maintain its operations.” The Russian-founded global mobile gaming giant will “close all the company’s offices” and “shut down all operations of its studios” in Russia and Belarus. The remaining staff will be “relocated from Russia and Belarus …

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Silicon Valley billionaire Yuri Milner renounces Russian citizenship

October 26, 2022

Billionaire Silicon Valley investor Yuri Milner said Monday he had renounced his Russian citizenship. “My family and I left Russia for good in 2014, after the Russian annexation of Crimea. And this summer, we officially completed the process of renouncing our Russian citizenship,” the Moscow-born Milner tweeted. Milner, founder of the internet investment firm DST Global and …

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EU bans crypto services for Russians in new sanctions over Ukraine escalation

October 7, 2022

The Council of the European Union has announced new sanctions against Russia on the backdrop of the deepening military conflict in Ukraine. The new measures include a full ban on the provision of wallet, account, or custody services for crypto assets to Russian persons and residents.  The measure will apply regardless of the value of these assets, according to …

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VK sells its international gaming division in fear of sanctions

October 6, 2022

Last week VK Company, one of Russia’s top Internet companies, announced the sale of its international gaming division My.Games to Alexander Chachava, Managing Partner of Russian venture firm LETA Capital.  The deal includes 100% of the shares and assets of My.Games, including its studios and game products.  The deal valued My.Games at $642 million — some …

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Banks from six countries suspend Russia’s MIR cards amid US pressure and Ukrainian hacker attacks

November 18, 2024

The international acceptance of MIR, Russia’s answer to Visa and Mastercard, shrunk dramatically last week as major banks from Armenia, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Turkey, Uzbekistan and Vietnam announced the suspension of such transactions. These announcements came soon after the US authorities warned banks outside the US that supporting MIR transactions could expose them to the risk …

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Putin grants Edward Snowden Russian citizenship

September 26, 2022

President Vladimir Putin on Monday granted Russian citizenship to U.S. whistleblower Edward Snowden, who exposed massive surveillance by the U.S. National Security Agency and was granted refuge by Moscow. A presidential decree published Monday included Edward Joseph Snowden born June 21, 1983, on a list of newly-minted Russian citizens, at a time when relations between …

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YouTube used increasingly in Russia mainly for entertainment purposes

September 20, 2022

According to Mediascope data (cited by Kommersant), Russians spent more time on YouTube in the first six months of 2022 than previously. They spent on average about 84 minutes per day on the site in this period, then 87 minutes in July and 88 minutes in August. Among the reasons for this trend could be news fatigue and a desire for …

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How parallel import provides Russians with Apple’s latest iPhone

September 28, 2022

The iPhone 14 went on sale in US stores Friday. Even though the company’s flagship product is not officially available in Russia, it will still reach the country via the so-called parallel imports scheme. Moreover, a strong ruble means there has reportedly been a significant uptick in pre-orders of the iPhone 14. There are even …

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Top Russian e-scooter service aims to raise $167 million on Moscow Exchange

September 19, 2022

Russian kicksharing service Whoosh intends to go public on the Moscow Exchange this or next year, unnamed sources told Forbes Russia and Reuters last week. Under plans, the e-scooter company could raise 10 billion roubles ($167 million at the current exchange rate) at a valuation of around 40 billion roubles ($666 million), Reuters learned.  A Whoosh spokesperson told Reuters: “Like …

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Yandex tests taxi hailing service in Dubai

September 21, 2022

Yango, the international division of Yandex operating taxi, kicksharing and delivery services, has launched its taxi hailing service in test mode in the United Arab Emirates, reports Interfax. “Yandex is developing world-class technologies and services and is constantly experimenting with them on international markets. Testing of taxis in Dubai on a pilot basis is no …

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From Yandex to RT: Russia expands presence in Serbia amid Ukraine war

September 13, 2022

The lavishly decorated main entrance of Serbia’s baroque-style parliament building was barely visible behind a sea of protest tents and a makeshift stage adorned with billboards. One of them featured the face of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov alongside the caption “the world’s greatest diplomat.” “We are the same people,” one of the protesters, a smiling …

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