Bloomberg: EU discussed the possibility of including Raiffeisen Bank International in the 21st package of sanctions against Russia

The 21st package of European Union sanctions against Russia may include restrictions on the Austrian Raiffeisen Bank International (RBI), which continues to operate in the Russian market.

Bloomberg writes about this, citing sources familiar with the matter.

On the eve of the EU countries during the discussions of the draft of the new sanctions package had differences on the issue of sanctions against RBI. Despite several rounds of negotiations between ambassadors before the meeting, the 27 member states did not reach an agreement on the sanctions. Another controversial issue was the proposal to ban former Russian military personnel from entering the EU.

In 2023, the National Agency for the Prevention of Corruption (NAPC) included the Austrian banking group Raiffeisen Bank International in the list of international sponsors of war. At that time, the reason for including the bank in this list was that it continued to operate in Russia, and also officially recognized the “DPR” and “LPR”. Austria opposed this: it was important for the country to remove the bank from the list of sponsors of war and it threatened to block the 12th package of EU sanctions.

Ultimately, the Ukrainian NAPC suspended the war sponsor status for Raiffeisen Bank, and Austria unblocked the 12th package of EU sanctions.

Why Raiffeisen Bank International has not yet left Russia

Raiffeisen remains the largest Western bank in Russia after a full-scale Russian invasion in 2022. But it is under pressure from regulators and foreign governments demanding it exit the Russian market, as many other Western companies have done.

RBI is trying to scale back its operations in Russia. But Russian regulators are reluctant to let Raiffeisen leave the country because it is one of the few channels of access to the international interbank payment system SWIFT.

A possible sale would likely lead to Western sanctions against the bank and its owner, cutting it off from global markets. The bankʼs assets have attracted interest from Hungarian businessman Istvan Tiborc, son-in-law of former Prime Minister Viktor Orban. A number of Russian and Western businessmen have also expressed interest.

In December 2025, Raiffeisen confirmed that it continues to look for a buyer for its Russian assets, and the groupʼs position regarding exiting the Russian market remains unchanged.

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