{
  "id": 12352781,
  "title": "UniCredit gets Putin’s approval to sell part of its Russian business",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/06/unicredit-gets-putins-approval-to-sell-part-of-its-russian-business-12352781",
  "topic": "finance",
  "section": "Finance & Markets",
  "published": "2026-10-06T10:06:06.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Euronews Business",
    "slug": "euronews-business",
    "url": "https://www.euronews.com/2026/10/06/unicredit-gets-putins-approval-to-sell-part-of-its-russian-business"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Russian President Vladimir Putin has granted Italian bank UniCredit the authority to sell a portion of its Russian operations, allowing the Milan-based group to reduce its presence in the country. UniCredit has been active in Russia since 1989 and maintains operations despite the ongoing conflict with Ukraine. In May, the bank announced plans to sell part of its Russian subsidiary to a private investor from the United Arab Emirates with strong ties to the local business community. This investor is believed to be Alfa Group, an international conglomerate with a positive relationship with the Kremlin. The decree permits UniCredit to sell 100% of its shares in the Russian UniCredit Bank, with the remaining business passing to a newly formed company under Italian ownership. The Italian group has estimated the financial impact of the deal at €3-3.3 billion. The deal would not have been possible without Putin's personal approval, as under a decree on special measures, any share transaction with UniCredit required special permission. Since 2022, UniCredit Bank has been on a list of banks requiring special permission for share transactions, and in 2025, the Russian central bank published a list of systemically important credit institutions, including UniCredit and Raiffeisenbank. Both banks have been under pressure from the European Central Bank to reduce their Russian operations, and UniCredit has argued that it cannot withdraw from Russia without Kremlin approval.",
  "summary": "The Italian bank plans to keep its international payments business while selling its other Russian operations. The approval contrasts with Moscow’s recent moves to place several Western companies’ local assets under temporary management.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Euronews",
        "title": "UniCredit gets Putin’s approval to sell part of its Russian business",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/06/unicredit-gets-putins-approval-to-sell-part-of-its-russian-business",
        "published": "2026-10-06T10:06:06.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}