Google prepares to close its Russian unit

ECONOMY UNDER SANCTIONS

Institute of International Finance projects a “deep recession” for Russia, citing Goldman Sachs’ tightening Russian financial conditions index. Robin Brooks, a chief economist at IIF, says the Russian GDP can fall by 30% in 2022 compared to a year ago, calling ruble recovery “an illusion.” [Source: Twitter of Robin Brooks, chief economist at Institute of International Finance]

Russian airports have reached out to the Russian government asking for the permission to use screening equipment beyond its expiration date to avoid potential delays at inspection points. All screening equipment in Russia is manufactured overseas and is subject to sanctions. [Source: Kommersant]

Russian tech giant Yandex is looking for buyers for its key businesses, including the search engine, mail and online film streaming service, according to Meduza’s reporting. The company dismissed these reports, saying Yandex.News and Yandex.Zen are the only deals it’s working on. [Source: Meduza] 

EXODUS CONTINUES

Google has relocated most of its Russian staff to the United Arab Emirates as it prepares to close its business in Russia. Google’s Russian unit is facing bankruptcy because of a fine imposed by Russian authorities. [Source: Wall Street Journal]

Ride-hailing company Gett said it plans to close down its services this month in Russia, which accounts for 14% of its revenue. Gett cited “current economic conditions,” noting its key corporate clients withdrawal from Russia resulted in a drop in profits. [Source: IXBT]

Instagram has barred Russian users from watching reels made by non-Russian users. Officially Russian users lost access to Instagram in March, but many still use the social media platform via virtual private networks (VPNs). [Source: News.ru]

STARTUPS

A Russian electronics marketplace Itogo.ru (Itogo.ru) has raised $50 million from Lanit Ventures, a venture arm of IT company Lanit Group. Lanit Group said it supports the e-commerce platform with the “expertise and the resources of its subsidiaries” in addition to funding, noting it sees 24/7 marketplaces as “a promising trend.” [Source: East West Digital News]

Boris Dobrodeev has retired as CEO of USM Holding to establish his own investment company. The new structure will support IT startups in Russia and other CIS countries where Dobrodeev sees an untapped potential for emerging hi-tech services. [Source: Forbes] 

CYBERSECURITY

Ukrainian IT professionals continue to join the cyber army fighting against Russia after the invasion of their country. They engage in cyber campaigns against Russian resources, including hacks of the Russian government’s websites and databases. [Source: AIN Capital]

Russian university Sirius plans to design cyber security educational programs for the Russian high schools. The move aims to help address a shortage of specialists in this field. [Source: TASS]

BANKS

SBP Pay, the domestic alternative to Google Pay and Apple Pay, has launched services in Russia. Previously, SBP, which stands for “quick payments system”, was only used for card-to-card online money transfers. [Source: Business FM]

Russia’s biggest bank Sber has sold a few of its digital assets, including a cloud service, online cinema and a digital audio service to an unknown buyer established just a short time ago. Experts say the move was necessary to protect the assets from Western sanctions. [Source: East West Digital News] 

Three top-managers of Sber have left the bank amid strategic changes, the bank announced. The retirees have joined a list of other high-ranked bank’s managers who departed the company soon after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. [Source: RIA Novosti]

IT EQUIPMENT

Chinese suppliers have significantly decreased the exports of electronics and telecommunications equipment to Russia, fearing secondary sanctions according to the U. S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo. Sales of smartphones declined by 66%, laptops by 40%, networking equipment by 98%. [Source: Washington Post]

Russian IT companies are accelerating their efforts to replace foreign-made products from vendors and manufacturers that have left the Russian market. While things look promising for software, analysts note there are more challenges with hardware replacements. [Source: Fontanka]