Auchan’s Russian business gets a CEO from the Kremlin two days after transfer to “temporary management”
Ilya Berdnikov, who previously worked at Russia’s Federal Agency for State Property Management (Rosimushchestvo), has become CEO of Auchan Retail Russia. Berdnikov took up the post on Sept. 19 — two days after Vladimir Putin placed the French retailer’s Russian business under the temporary care of JSC L.E.V. Management. As The Insider previously found, a week before the decree JSC L.E.V. was…
On September 19, Ilya Berdnikov became CEO of Auchan Retail Russia, taking the reins just two days after the French retailer's Russian business was placed under temporary management by JSC L.E.V. Management. Berdnikov, who previously served as executive director at Rosimushchestvo, will oversee the company while current CEO Asya Balabai remains to handle day-to-day operations.
Former Ministry of Internal Affairs general Andrei Krayushkin, head of L.E.V. Management, will manage the overall process without a formal title at Auchan. The decree placing the Russian assets of Auchan and Nestlé under temporary management was signed by Vladimir Putin on September 17, following a similar move for the Russian business of another French retailer, Nestlé.
L.E.V. Management, a newly registered entity in October 2024 with a charter capital of 15,000 rubles, had no revenue or employees in 2025. Andrei Krayushkin, who became CEO of L.E.V. Management on September 10, pledged to keep Auchan running as a single retail chain and ensure store continuity. Other companies placed under L.E.V.'s management, such as Lemana PRO and Nestlé's Russian division, also continue to operate under their existing management structures.
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