Netflix, TikTok, Samsung, and credit card companies have joined the growing list of companies that have severed ties with Russia or are reconsidering their operations in the country as reputational and financial risks mount.
Many companies have found it difficult, if not impossible, to supply parts, make payments, and deliver goods to and from Russia due to international sanctions, the closure of airspace and transportation links due to the war, and financial restrictions on SWIFT and capital controls. Furthermore, the potential international consumer backlash against any company perceived to be assisting Vladimir Putin’s regime means that the exodus of corporations from Russia has become a stampede.
The withdrawal reverses three decades of foreign investment in the country since the Soviet Union’s disintegration in 1991, particularly in the energy sector.
PricewaterhouseCoopers and KPMG, two of the Big Four auditors, also announced on Sunday that they would cut ties with Russian companies. Within a week, the majority of the world’s largest automakers, including General Motors, Ford Motor, Volkswagen, and Toyota Motor, announced a halt to shipments to Russia. Samsung Electronics, Russia’s largest smartphone seller, has halted all product exports to the country. Samsung announced a $6 million donation to humanitarian efforts in the region, including $1 million in consumer electronics. Microsoft has halted all new product and service sales in Russia.
In Russia, Netflix has fewer than one million subscribers. The streaming behemoth has been present in the country as part of a joint venture with National Media Group. TikTok and other video-streaming platforms are also suspending or discontinuing services as a result of Russia’s new “fake news” law. As part of government sanctions, Meta Platform has suspended all advertising in Russia.
