The key facts

  • Google's Russian branch transferred almost 16.8 billion rubles ($207.7 million) toward fines imposed on the parent company in the US.
  • During the bankruptcy, more than 18.8 billion rubles entered the bankruptcy estate of Google LLC (Russia); over 400 million rubles went toward wage debts to former employees.
  • Google's official debt to Russia for administrative fines has reached 2 undecillion rubles and continues to grow due to the delay.

Payments toward the parent company's fines

Google's Russian subsidiary has paid out almost 16.8 billion rubles (about $207.7 million) toward fines imposed in Russia on the American Google LLC. This was announced at a court hearing by Valery Talyarovsky, the bankruptcy trustee of Google LLC (Russia), as reported by the state agency RIA, which is cited by Anadolu.

How the amount added up

According to Talyarovsky, by September 20 more than 16.7 billion rubles ($206.5 million) had been received into the Russian company's account. About 14.7 billion rubles ($181.7 million) of that was deducted by the Federal Bailiff Service toward the parent company's fines. Another 2.1 billion rubles ($26 million) was collected by bailiffs from debtors of the Russian division under enforcement documents in its favor — these funds also went toward paying the American corporation's fines. In total, the payments reached almost 16.8 billion rubles.

The fate of the remaining funds and the scale of the debt

Over the entire bankruptcy proceedings, more than 18.8 billion rubles ($232.5 million) entered the bankruptcy estate of Google LLC (Russia). The remaining funds, according to the trustee, were directed toward current claims of the Federal Tax Service and toward repaying wage debts to former employees — more than 400 million rubles ($5 million) went to the workers.

Where the astronomical debt came from

Google's debt to Russia in administrative fines, as Anadolu notes citing RIA, has reached 2 undecillion rubles and continues to grow due to the payment delay; this sum exceeds the combined global GDP, which in 2023 stood at about $106 trillion according to the World Bank. The dispute began with a 2020 decision: after losing lawsuits over the blocking of several Russian channels on YouTube, Google began accruing a daily fine of 100,000 rubles, doubling every week. After 2022, YouTube blocked other Russian channels as well, the number of claimants grew to 17, and the company was also regularly fined for non-compliance with Russian legislation.