Corporate exodus: Netflix, TikTok, KPMG, PwC suspend Russia operations
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More Western corporations are cutting ties with Russia as the conflict in Ukraine continues to escalate. According to the United Nations, more than 1.5M people have fled the country since the hostilities began on Feb. 24. There were also reports of ongoing attacks in Mariupol and Volnovakha over the weekend despite ceasefire agreements aimed at allowing civilians to leave the two cities.
The latest: Payment titans Visa and Mastercard have suspended operations in Russia, saying they were "compelled to act following the unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, and the unacceptable events that we have witnessed." Cards issued by Russian banks will no longer be supported by their respective payment networks and cards issued outside of Russia will no longer work in the country. American Express and PayPal also announced they would suspend operations, hours after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on companies to shelve business in Russia during a video call with U.S. lawmakers.
It doesn't stop there. Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) halted its service in the country, while TikTok (BDNCE) suspended new content. Two of the Big Four accounting firms, KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers, also severed ties with their businesses in Russia. Meanwhile, Vladimir Putin has decreed that foreign bondholders must be paid in rubles as a way to service debt while capital controls remain in place.
Sanctions response: "I would advise them not to escalate the situation," Vladimir Putin said at an Aeroflot training center near Moscow. "These sanctions that are being imposed are akin to a declaration of war, but thank God it has not come to that. I think our so-called 'partners' still have an understanding of what those ramifications and threats to everybody can be." Putin also added that any third-party declaration of a no-fly zone would be considered "participation in the armed conflict."