Petition for withdrawal of Raiffeisen Bank from Russia receives 50,000 votes

The petition by an international civil society coalition, calling on the board of Raiffeisen Bank International to “immediately close its business in Russia, a country recognised by the European Parliament as a state sponsor of terrorism,” has received more than 49,700 votes.

Source: B4Ukraine

Quote: “If thousands of us pressure the bank’s board members right before its upcoming annual meeting in Vienna, it could be a step closer to blocking Russia’s access to financial resources which fuel its unjust aggression”, stated the authors of the petition.

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Details: It is noted that the appeal of the international coalition B4Ukraine, jointly with BankTrack and WeMove Europe, concerns the general meeting of the bank’s management, scheduled for 4 April in Vienna.

The activists plan to start the rally at 9:00 at Wiener Stadthalle, Hall F, Roland-Rainer-Platz, to encourage the Raiffeisen board to sever ties with Russia, the aggressor country.

“With our collective pressure, we will show that all of Europe is watching, fed up with their dodging double dealings, and we want action. Together we could force Raiffeisen to halt its financing of Putin’s war machine,” the statement said.

B4Ukraine calls on the board of Raiffeisen Bank International AG to dismiss the bank’s Russian assets and, as other creditors have done before them, withdraw from Russia as soon as possible without transferring valuable assets that it could use to continue the war against Ukraine.

Background: 

• On 17 December, Ukraine’s National Agency on Corruption Prevention (NACP) temporarily removed the Austrian Raiffeisen Bank from the list of companies that sponsor Russia’s war before consultations.
• The Austrian banking group Raiffeisen Bank International (RBI) has not yet left the Russian market, after two years of war and promises to leave the Russian market.
• The Centre Against Terrorism and Hybrid Threats of the Czech Republic is investigating the activities of the Austrian banking group Raiffeisenbank in the Russian Federation.

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