Russian authorities have placed the assets of German retail group Metro in the country under "temporary management", less than two weeks after taking the same measure against other companies from European countries supporting Ukraine, Agence France-Presse reported.
By decree of Russian President Vladimir Putin, published today, all of the company's assets in Russia have been transferred under "temporary management" to the newly registered Russian state-owned company UK Torg Rus.
"The company continues to operate as usual, all operational processes remain unchanged," Metro spokespeople said, quoted by TASS. The retailer continues to fulfill its obligations to suppliers, customers and employees within the framework of normal business hours, the spokespeople added.
According to the financial results of “Metro“, the Russian market accounts for nearly 8.7 percent of the group's total sales. “Metro“'s turnover in Russia in the first nine months of 2026 reached 2.14 billion euros.
Russia is also the fastest growing market for the German wholesale chain, with sales in the country increasing by over 10 percent. This represents around a third of the group's total sales growth, with the result supported by favourable exchange rates.
According to the Russian president's decree, the Russian subsidiary's cash and cash equivalents amounted to €152 million as of June 30, 2026.
Russia, which has been subject to numerous Western sanctions since the start of the war in Ukraine in 2022, has taken similar measures against a number of European companies in recent weeks.
Less than two weeks ago, the assets of the Russian subsidiary of the French „Auchan“, as well as the former Russian company of the home and construction goods group „Leroy Merlin“, were placed under „interim administration“. The same measure was applied to the assets of the Swiss food giant “Nestle“, recalls AFP.
The Kremlin justified the measure by saying that these companies belong to countries that are “hostile“ to Russia and support Ukraine.
Hundreds of billions of euros of Russian assets have been frozen in Europe since the beginning of the conflict with Ukraine, which is defined as illegal by Russia from the point of view of international law.