Russia-based tech giant Yandex pulls the plug on Irish subsidiary

Stock image. Photo: Simon Dawson

Jonathan Keane

June 26 2022 02:30 AM

Yandex, the Russian tech giant, is shutting down its Irish entity less than six months after registering it here.

The company is often referred to as Russia’s Google with its business spanning search, cloud computing and transport apps.

It established a unit called Yandex Finance Designated Activity Company in Ireland in January just a few weeks before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. It is unclear what functions it had planned to operate in Ireland.

The entity has since filed an application for voluntary strike-off with the Companies Registration Office. The company never traded. Yandex declined to comment on the application.

Yandex was represented by the Dublin offices of corporate services firm Cafico International, which has worked with several Russian clients.

After the invasion of Ukraine, Cafico stated it was terminating its relationships with Russia-linked companies. Managing director Rodney O’Rourke told the Sunday Independent it is no longer working with Yandex.

Yandex’s primary markets are Russia and a handful of eastern European and central Asian states. Before the war in Ukraine, it had been making gradual moves into western Europe, launching food delivery in London and Paris and cloud services in Germany. It operates a data centre in Finland.

After the invasion it faced a backlash in some of the EU countries where it has a presence, including Latvian authorities banning its taxi app.

Yandex has been in disarray since the war started, including its shares on the Nasdaq being suspended. Its founder and chief executive Arkady Volozh was sanctioned by the EU and has since resigned. The company itself has not been sanctioned.

For the first quarter of the year, it reported a net loss of 8.1bn roubles (€144.1m) and cited the challenge of “geopolitical developments”.