500 Russian Aitians were released and 700 were taken to Berlin: Deutsche Bank leaves with the Russian Federation
It is now known that the Frankfurt Bank has offered individual weekend assistance for 500 Russian IT professionals, and according to the anonymous sources of the publication of 700 Russians, the bank secretly reconciled in its new technological center in Berlin. Deutsche Bank has not yet officially stated the complete cessation of their IT operations in Russia, but, according to people of acquaintances with the situation, this issue is already considered resolved within the company.
Since 2001, Deutsche Bank has become strongly dependent on Russian IT professionals. Over the last decade, their number has begun to grow significantly in the company, but after Russia's invasion of Ukraine it was decided to end this addiction. Yet, some of the experts were decided to leave, but already as experts who were registered.
Those who remained in Russia were cut off from direct access to any IT system Deutsche Bank, and their main task was to "transfer knowledge" to colleagues outside the Russian Federation. Now this process is coming to completion, and in connection with Western sanctions on limiting the availability of software in the country, the bank now wants to part with the employees remaining in Russia in the next six months. Deutsche Bank has been an active player in the modern Russian market for decades.
However, he provided financial services to residents of the Russian Empire in 1881 and was one of the first foreign banks to return to the country after the collapse of the Soviet Union. The Bank was engaged in investment banking, securities trade, corporate and retail business. In 2006, he was licensed to perform banking operations in rubles. However, after Russia occupied Crimea in 2014, the West imposed a number of sanctions against Russian officials, companies and sectors of the economy.
This led to the collapse of the ruble, a sharp decrease in oil and gas prices and the deterioration of business climate in Russia. Many Western banks and companies have reduced or suspended their activities in Russia. Deutsche Bank also suffered from sanctions and crisis. In 2015, he announced a reduction in his presence in Russia by 75 percent and the dismissal of about 200 employees. The bank closed its investment business and left only the minimum level of service of its customers.
In addition, Deutsche Bank has been involved in several scandalous affairs related to Russia. In 2017, he paid fines totaling about $ 630 million US and British regulators for participating in the scheme of money laundering through Russia worth about $ 10 billion. In 2019, the Bank was accused of providing false data on its operations in Russia with German financial supervision.
In 2020, Deutsche Bank became the object of investigation of the US Congress about their ties with Donald Trump and his family, who received loans from a bank worth more than $ 2 billion. These and other factors have led to Deutsche Bank decided to finally leave the Russian market. In April 2022, he sold his retail business in Russia VTB Bank for a symbolic amount of 1 euro. In October 2022, he announced the closure of his representation in Moscow and transfer his clients to other regions.
Thus, Deutsche Bank has become another example of how political and economic events have affected the fate of Western banks in Russia, experts say. It also indicates that the hope that the mass western sanctions that were imposed against Russia for its invasion of Ukraine will not be lifted. As a result, the Russian market has become less attractive and promising for foreign investors.