Judgment by Russian court sustains billionaire's case against Raiffeisen Bank
Raiffeisen Bank Takes Another Financially Devastating Hit
In a hard blow to Raiffeisen Bank International (RBI), an appeals court in St. Petersburg has dismissed its appeal and demanded a whopping 2.044 billion euros in damages - a decision that spells trouble for the Austrian institution. Lawyers from RBI confirmed this news to Reuters on April 24, 2025.
RBI, expecting minimal additional impact, released a statement, stating they'd already accounted for 840 million euros of the damages in their fourth quarter earnings of 2024. The remaining amount will be recovered through the sale of assets belonging to the Russian plaintiff in Austria.
The case takes root in a lawsuit filed by the Russian company Rasperia, previously linked to oligarch Oleg Deripaska. However, Deripaska now denies ownership. The EU-sanctioned Rasperia is seeking damages for its frozen stake in the Austrian construction conglomerate Strabag. The lawsuit targets Strabag, its main Austrian shareholders, and the Russian RBI subsidiary. The frozen 28.5 million shares package, neither tradeable nor entitled to dividends, is at the heart of the issue.
According to the Russian court, Strabag and its main shareholders - RBI's main shareholder Raiffeisen-Holding Lower Austria-Wien, insurer Uniqa, and the family of Strabag founder Hans Peter Haselsteiner - are responsible for around two billion euros in damages to Rasperia. The ruling can now be enforced on the assets of the Russian RBI subsidiary. The ruling has no effect in Austria.
Interestingly, RBI was not named as a debtor but rather as an economically connected party. The goal of the lawsuit, RBI asserted earlier, was to permit the enforcement of the ruling in Russia. The Russian subsidiary has around six billion euros in equity capital, which leaves room for maneuver.
Raiffeisen
Although the Russian subsidiary is likely to pay this sum soon, RBI plans to appeal the ruling in the next Russian instance. Simultaneously, RBI has also announced its intention to file a lawsuit at the Vienna Commercial Court, aiming to obtain damages from Rasperia in Austria. The bank hopes for a sanctions-compliant release of the Strabag shares and their sale by an investment bank. The profits and frozen dividends would serve as compensation. The market value of the share package is approximately two billion euros, but such a procedure could take years.
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The ongoing legal battles in Russia and Austria will prolong financial uncertainty for RBI. The bank is weighing a carefully managed exit from Russia, given the sanctions and the risks associated with operating in a hostile environment. Despite significant profits over the past three years, RBI has yet to repatriate capital from Russia, with dividends blocked by the country. Previous attempts to sell the Strabag share package have fallen through due to US government intervention due to uncertainties regarding Deripaska's involvement, who is also subject to US sanctions. The current ruling and the anticipated lifting of court-imposed sales restrictions in Russia could remove a significant obstacle. However, the question remains whether a sale will actually take place.
[1] Reuters - Raiffeisen Bank International Faces EUR 2 Billion Fine in Russian Ruling[2] Financial Times - Raiffeisen Bank International Suffers EUR 2 Billion Hit in Russian Ruling[3] Bloomberg - Raiffeisen Bank International Faces Russian Court's Two Billion Euro Fine[4] Wall Street Journal - RBI in Hot Water Over Russian Investment Connections
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| Asset | Current | 1Y Performance ||---|---|---|Raiffeisen Stock | projected | 7.5% |Strabag Share Package | Frozen | Losing Value |
- Raiffeisen-Holding Lower Austria-Wien, a main shareholder of Raiffeisen Bank International (RBI), is among the entities responsible for around two billion euros in damages to Rasperia, as per a Russian court ruling.
- Amid this financial challenge, Raiffeisen Bank has confirmed its intention to appeal the Russian court ruling and simultaneously file a lawsuit at the Vienna Commercial Court to obtain damages from Rasperia in Austria.
- The sports section might report on the strategic moves RBI is considering, including a potential, cautious exit from Russia given the ongoing sanctions and hostile environment, while general-news outlets discuss the ongoing legal battles in Russia and Austria and their potential impact on RBI's financial stability.
- Crime and justice departments may follow the development of RBI's legal actions against Rasperia in Austria, as well as any potential investigations into the involvement of oligarch Oleg Deripaska in the ongoing lawsuit.
