Putin decree lets UniCredit sell its Russian bank while keeping a carved-out payments unit
Serguey Asael Shinder2 min readRussian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on Monday 5 October allowing Italy's UniCredit to sell part of its Russian business, Euronews reported on 6 October.
What the decree allows. It "permits the reorganisation" of UniCredit Bank in Russia: part of the Russian legal entity is separated into a new company that stays in Italian hands, and the group may sell 100% of its shares in the Russian UniCredit Bank. The carved-out bank will focus on international euro and dollar payments for corporate clients who are not under sanctions; the rest of the business passes to the buyer.
The buyer and the cost. In May UniCredit announced plans to sell to "a well-established private investor in the United Arab Emirates", without naming it. Kommersant has reported that the investor represents Alfa Group. UniCredit estimates the negative impact of the deal on its results at €3–3.3 billion and said in May that it expected to complete the transaction in the first half of 2027, subject to binding agreements, the separation of the businesses and regulatory approvals.
Why a decree was needed. Since 2022, under rules on "unfriendly" countries, UniCredit Bank has been on a list of banks for which any share transaction requires special permission. Since October 2024, according to UNCTAD figures cited by Euronews, affected foreign asset sales must be at a discount of at least 60% to market value and pay an exit tax of at least 35%. UniCredit had argued that leaving was impossible without the Kremlin's approval; chief executive Andrea Orcel has said the bank would not sell its Russian assets too cheaply, according to Kommersant.
Context. UniCredit and Raiffeisenbank were among 12 lenders the Russian central bank listed as systemically important in 2025. On 17 September a Putin decree transferred management of assets linked to 16 companies, including Nestlé and Auchan, to a little-known firm, and on 28 September Metro AG lost operational control of its Russian subsidiary under another decree.