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100,000 IT professionals left Russia this year, minister acknowledges

December 21, 2022

While IT brain drain is not new in Russia, the trend has accelerated dramatically in 2022 following Russia’s war on Ukraine, the subsequent international sanctions and new waves of political repression across the country.  Speaking at the Russian parliament on December 20, digitalization minister Maksut Shadaev provided his estimate of the number of IT professionals …

100,000 IT professionals left Russia this year, minister acknowledges Read More

Russian investors seek assistance in darknet to recover blocked crypto assets

January 30, 2023

Service offers to release Russian investors’ assets blocked on international crypto exchanges are springing up in the darknet, reports Russian business daily Kommersant. Among the methods used are the transfer of the funds to an unblocked account, the renewal of accounts submitting fake KYC information, etc. The cost of such services may vary between 35% and …

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Alexei Kudrin leaves public office to take top role at new look Yandex

November 30, 2022

Former finance minister Alexei Kudrin, once a leading reformist in President Vladimir Putin’s inner circle, is leaving public service to go into business. He is set to take charge of Yandex, Russia’s leading digital company. The transformation of a senior official into a businessman appears to be one of those common attempts to convert political …

Alexei Kudrin leaves public office to take top role at new look Yandex Read More

Yandex could dismantle itself amid domestic and international pressure

November 26, 2022

Yandex, arguably the most successful and emblematic Russian digital company over the past 25 years, could be split amid the international and domestic tensions that have followed Russia’s attack on Ukraine on Feb. 24.  Confirming earlier media reports (FT, NYT, The Bell), Yandex announced Friday it had “commenced a strategic process to review options to restructure the …

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Is the Kremlin betting on Wildberries to consolidate e-commerce as foreign players exit Russia?

November 23, 2022

In the first nine months of 2022 Wildberries saw turnover increase 95% year on year to over RUB1 trillion (around $16.5bn). The online retailer has enjoyed a wildly successful couple of years, it now dominates the Russian market and is almost twice the size of its closest competitor. Indeed, while it may not be a household name in the West, Wildberries …

Is the Kremlin betting on Wildberries to consolidate e-commerce as foreign players exit Russia? Read More

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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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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Russian microelectronics lags behind the world by 15 years

September 13, 2022

Lagging behind the world in the development of microelectronics for 15 years, Russia critically depends on foreign technologies in the design and production of relevant products, the authorities concede as the sanctions have made further development even more challenging.  The main issues of Russia’s microelectronics industry are listed in a draft policy document about industry development …

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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 …

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

Russia fines Twitch over Ukraine presidential adviser video

September 8, 2022

Russia fined U.S. streaming platform Twitch on Tuesday for the second time this month over its refusal to remove an interview with an adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, state media reported. A Moscow court said Twitch should pay 3 million rubles ($49,500) for the video with Oleksyi Arestovich, according to the TASS news agency. The …

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Russia has blocked 138,000 websites since Ukraine invasion, prosecutor says

August 12, 2022

Russian authorities have blocked or deleted some 138,000 websites since Moscow launched its invasion of neighboring Ukraine in February, the country’s prosecutor general said Monday.  Following over 300 requests from prosecutors, Russia’s communications watchdog Roskomnadzor has censored thousands of websites in a bid to combat “fake news,” according to prosecutor general Igor Krasnov.  “After the start of …

Russia has blocked 138,000 websites since Ukraine invasion, prosecutor says Read More

Ex-Yandex head takes EU to court over sanctions

August 5, 2022

The former head of Russia’s top tech firm Yandex Tigran Khudaverdyan has challenged sanctions against him over the Ukraine war in a European Union court. Khudaverdyan filed a lawsuit on June 7 demanding the European Council lift its “discriminatory and disproportionate” sanctions against him. The lawsuit was first reported by TV channel RTVI on Monday evening.  Khudaverdyan quit as Yandex executive …

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