Russian court ruling could see $129 million freeze on some of Google's French assets

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Google has had €110 million in French assets frozen by Russian authorities
The move is a response to a reported illegal dividend payment in 2021
Russian is cracking down on Western tech firms and restricting citizen's access

A Russian arbitration court ruling has found Google guilty of an illegal dividend payment, which has triggered a temporary freeze of around €110 million in Alphabet-owned French assets.

Official court orders show this measure was confirmed by an administrator of Google’s defunct Russian subsidiary, and the action presents as a rare attempt from Russian authorities to target western company assets through legal channels.

Google was reportedly guilty of an illegal dividend payment worth around 10 billion rubles (€110 million) in 2021, a Russian tribunal found.

Temporary freeze

The firm can challenge this temporary freeze with an enforcement judge in the French courts. Russian authorities are attempting similar actions in Turkey, South Africa, and Spain.

TechRadar Pro has reached out to Google but did not immediately receive a response.

Google no longer operates in Russia, after its bank accounts were frozen by Russian authorities back in 2022 in the midst of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, making its operations untenable.

Currently, Russia is threatening to block all Google services in a ‘soft squeeze’ of US tech, contemplating an all-out ban on its services. This is ostensibly because the company stores user data outside of the country, representing a ‘serious threat’ to the country and its economy through the monitoring of Russian businesses. This could in turn be used to inform further sanctions against the already heavily sanctioned state.

This is part of a wider pattern of digital isolation, not uncommon for a country at war, especially if it faces significant backlash from around the globe. Popular apps like FaceTime, Snapchat, and most recently WhatsApp may face bans in the country.

Russian censorship has escalated in recent months, with a crackdown on VPNs making it much more difficult for citizens to access unbiased information or to communicate securely and privately both within Russia and with the outside world.

Via Reuters

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Ellen has been writing for almost four years, with a focus on post-COVID policy whilst studying for BA Politics and International Relations at the University of Cardiff, followed by an MA in Political Communication. Before joining TechRadar Pro as a Junior Writer, she worked for Future Publishing’s MVC content team, working with merchants and retailers to upload content.

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