“A Russian court ordered the Austrian Raiffeisen Bank International (RBI) to pay more than 2 billion euros ($2.1 billion) as compensation for losses to the Russian co-owner of Strabag, the investment company Rasperia.”, — write: epravda.com.ua
A Russian court ordered the Austrian Raiffeisen Bank International (RBI) to pay more than 2 billion euros ($2.1 billion) as compensation for losses to the Russian co-owner of Strabag, the investment company Rasperiya. This is reported by Reuters. This decision became one of the largest lawsuits against a Western company that continues to operate in Russia, and provides for a record compensation for damages. Andriy Tymchuk, a partner at the law firm Delcredere, which represents Raiffeisen’s interests, said that “this lawsuit with gross violations of the rules is an attempt to force the sale of blocked assets through a Russian court.” Advertisement: He also added that the court limited the defendants’ right to express themselves, file petitions and provide evidence, and the decision was made in favor of “Rasperia” in a hurry. “During the session, unknown armed men in balaclavas were in the hall, who were seated next to the defendant for obvious pressure,” Tymchuk added. The lawsuit was filed by Rasperia against the Austrian shareholders of Strabag, the company itself and the Russian division of Raiffeisen.Advertisement: In 2023, the RBI intended to buy Rasperia’s stake in Strabag for 1.5 billion euros. However, the bank backed out of the deal due to concerns over US sanctions, which recognized Rasperia as part of a group of companies linked to Russian billionaire Oleg Deripaska. Raiffeisen still has assets worth about 6 billion euros in Russia, derived from international payments and deposits. As a reminder: the Russian government will block any attempt by Raiffeisen Bank International AG and UniCredit SpA to sell their local divisions to any buyer that may fall under sanctions. The Arbitration Court of the Kaliningrad Region of the Russian Federation seized the shares of the Russian Raiffeisenbank as security for the lawsuit of Rasperia Trading Limited.