Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on August 5, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 22, 2026
Add as preferred source on GoogleRaiffeisen Bank's Russian shares can now be sold after a court ruling lifted previous restrictions, aiding RBI's exit strategy from Russia.
By Elena Fabrichnaya
MOSCOW (Reuters) -A Russian court has lifted interim measures that effectively banned Austria's Raiffeisen Bank International from selling its Russian subsidiary, a lawyer for the bank and the Russian unit, Raiffeisenbank, told Reuters on Tuesday.
The court's decision could bring RBI closer to finding a way to exit Russia, which the bank says it has been working on for more than three years since Russia launched the conflict in Ukraine.
But finding a suitable, non-sanctioned buyer remains a challenge and banks face extra regulatory hurdles, including needing the personal approval for any deal from President Vladimir Putin.
RBI did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
A Russian court had in June rejected RBI's bid to lift the injunction, the result of a lawsuit brought by Russian investment firm Rasperia after a collapsed deal in which RBI was ordered last year to pay around 2 billion euros ($2.3 billion) in damages.
The bank's dispute with Rasperia followed the failure of a deal that RBI hoped would allow it to unlock some of its frozen assets in Russia. RBI had sought to buy a stake in Vienna-based construction company Strabag, but pulled out under pressure from Washington.
Anastasia Taradankina, a lawyer for Raiffeisen's Russian subsidiary from Russian law firm Delcredere, confirmed that the court's interim share seizure had been overturned.
"We have done everything and the measures were lifted," Taradankina told Reuters.
According to court filings, the measures were lifted on August 4.
RBI swung to a loss in the second quarter after a 1.2 billion euro ($1.4 billion) write-off over the legal dispute in Russia, it said last week.
($1 = 0.8667 euros)
(Reporting by Elena Fabrichnaya; Writing by Alexander Marrow; Editing by Sharon Singleton and David Holmes)
A Russian court lifted interim measures that had banned Raiffeisen Bank International from selling its Russian subsidiary.
Finding a suitable, non-sanctioned buyer remains a challenge, along with extra regulatory hurdles, including needing personal approval from President Vladimir Putin.
The measures were lifted on August 4, as confirmed by a lawyer for Raiffeisen's Russian subsidiary.
Raiffeisen Bank swung to a loss in the second quarter after a 1.2 billion euro write-off due to the legal dispute in Russia.
The lawsuit was brought by Russian investment firm Rasperia, following a collapsed deal that involved Raiffeisen Bank.
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