“Raiffeisen Bank” shares fall 8.2% after accusations of facilitating Russian trade

Shares of Austrian banking group “Raiffeisen Bank” International fell 8.2% after a report by investment fund “Grizzly Research” accused the bank of facilitating trade in Russian sanctioned goods.

This is reported by Bloomberg.

According to “Grizzly Research”, “Raiffeisen” may be involved in $1.19 billion worth of Russian goods that are subject to import and export restrictions by the EU, US and UK. “Grizzly Research” said its findings were based on Russian customs data from 2022 to early 2025.

At the same time, Bloomberg notes that this $1.19 billion is the customs value of the goods. This data in itself does not prove that “Raiffeisen” made payments for these transactions, financed them, or violated sanctions.

“Grizzly Research” said that Raiffeisen has become one of the key channels for circumventing sanctions in the Russian economy. At the same time, the fund opened a short position on the bankʼs shares. That is, it expects to profit from their decline.

“Raiffeisen” has denied the allegations. Bank spokesman Rupert Rife said the bankʼs sanctions compliance monitoring system was robust and that the “Grizzly Research” report contained "a number of factually false and misleading statements".

“Raiffeisen Bank” and Russia

“Raiffeisen” remains one of the few Western banking groups to continue operating in Russia after the full-scale invasion began. The bankʼs management, including new CEO Michael Gellerer, has stated its intention to exit the Russian market.

The bank tried to sell its Russian unit but failed to obtain the necessary approvals from Russian authorities, the EU and the US. At the same time, Raiffeisen says it has significantly reduced its activities in Russia at the request of the European Central Bank.

The bank has also reduced international payments in Russia and serves only a limited number of large clients due to regulatory requirements and rising costs of complying with sanctions.

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