President Vladimir Putin signed an executive order on Monday that places the Russian subsidiary of German retailer Metro AG under “temporary management” of the state.
The order hands the shares of Metro Russia to Torg Rus, a management firm that corporate records show was registered earlier this month. The current CEO of Metro Russia, Johannes Tholey, is also listed as the CEO of Torg Rus.
In a statement, Metro’s Russian subsidiary said that it continued to operate as usual but did not directly comment on Putin’s order.
Metro, one of the world’s fourth-largest retailers, is the latest Western business to have its Russian operations seized since Putin signed an order in 2023 granting the state the authority to place foreign assets under its temporary management.
Earlier this month, the Kremlin took control of the Russian subsidiaries of French supermarket chain Auchan, Swiss food giant Nestlé, home improvement retailer Lemana PRO (formerly Leroy Merlin) and two French logistics companies.
Moscow has described the asset seizures as a response to “hostile actions” taken by “unfriendly” foreign governments.
The move against Metro Russia comes after Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov met with his German counterpart for the first time since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The two diplomats met on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York.
Lavrov later complained that he had learned nothing new from his meeting with the German foreign minister.
Just weeks ago, Germany accused Russia of being behind an attempted drone attack at Leipzig/Halle Airport and retaliated by closing a Russian consulate and the Russian cultural center in Berlin. Moscow has denied the allegations, which it said were fabricated.
Reuters contributed reporting.
