Putin allowed the Italian bank to sell part of its business in Russia
Russian President Vladimir Putin has authorized the Italian UniCredit group to reorganize its subsidiary bank in Russia and sell its shares. According to the plan, the business will be split into two: one part will remain under the control of the Italian group, while the remaining part will be sold to an investor in the UAE.
Putin authorized the Italian bank to sell part of its business in Russia
The decree published on October 5 allows the spin-off of a separate company from "UniCredit Bank" and the conclusion of a transaction regarding 100 percent of the bank's shares owned by UniCredit.
The document notes that other permits and approvals provided for by Russian legislation are not required for these transactions. Nevertheless, the granting of permission does not mean the sale has been finalized.
UniCredit stated that on May 7, 2026, it signed a preliminary, non-binding agreement to sell part of its operations in Russia. The buyer is said to be a private investor in the United Arab Emirates, but their name has not been disclosed.
According to the group's official statement, part of the banking operations in Russia will be transferred to a new legal entity. All shares of the new bank will remain with UniCredit, while the bank containing the remaining business will be fully sold to the buyer.
The Italian group plans to focus its activities in Russia mainly on international payments. This entails servicing transactions, primarily in euros and US dollars, of non-sanctioned Russian and Western corporate clients.
The company intended to complete the transaction in the first half of 2027. It was noted that this requires signing binding documents, implementing the business separation process, and meeting the requirements of relevant regulators.
Earlier, in May 2025, media wrote that UAE-registered companies Asas Capital, Mada Capital, and Inweasta had expressed interest in acquiring UniCredit's business in Russia.
According to DW, Inweasta founder Andrey Yelinson was a managing partner at A1, the investment arm of "Alfa Group", until 2023. However, none of these companies have been confirmed as the buyer in the current transaction.
UniCredit has remained one of the major Western banks continuing to operate in the country even after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. European regulators have been demanding that the group reduce its presence in Russia.
Meanwhile, the sale process in Russia has been complicated by the requirement of special presidential permission for transactions with bank shares owned by investors from "unfriendly" countries. Putin's new decree provides such permission for the reorganization and sale planned by UniCredit.