Russian E-Commerce Brands Seek Kremlin Aid as Losses Approach 1 Trillion Rubles

Russian e-commerce brands have requested financial support from the federal government following losses to warehouse and logistics infrastructure caused by Ukrainian drone strikes. In a letter sent to Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, the Association of Digital Platforms (ACP), which includes companies such as Ozon, Yandex, Avito, Kuper and Wildberries, called for non-repayable federal assistance for affected sellers. The association requested that the amount of support be determined based on actual losses and the scale of companies’ operations.

Russian E-Commerce Brands Also Request Tax Deferrals

In addition to direct financial assistance, the ACP requested that businesses affected by the strikes be granted at least a six-month deferral or installment plan for taxes and mandatory payments. The cancellation of penalties and late-payment charges incurred during the period in which normal operations were disrupted was also among the demands. The total amount of public support requested could reportedly reach hundreds of billions of rubles.

Wildberries and Sellers’ Losses Could Approach $12 Billion

According to Data Insight estimates, Wildberries’ direct losses related to its warehouse infrastructure stand at between 147 billion and 223 billion rubles. When the costs of demolition, debris removal and restoring the sites for future use are included, the figure could rise to 278 billion rubles. The value of goods lost by sellers in the warehouses was estimated at between 445 billion and 507 billion rubles. According to estimates by the Association of Product Suppliers to Electronic Marketplaces, seller losses could reach 600–700 billion rubles, while the total damage could approach 1 trillion rubles, or approximately $12 billion.

ACP President Margarita Evstigneeva said some sellers had lost up to 95 percent of their total inventory. Evstigneeva stated that Wildberries had paid small sellers an average of between 2,000 and 30,000 rubles, adding that these payments did not cover even 20 percent of their losses.

Payment and Cash Flow Problems in E-Commerce Operations

Following the strikes, Wildberries reportedly experienced a decline in revenue, while signs of a cash flow shortfall emerged. Sellers reported widespread delays in payments for goods sold, while the company’s subsidiary WB Bank reportedly began raising funds from retail customers through short-term deposits offering annual interest rates of more than 14 percent.

For Russian e-commerce brands, the loss of physical warehouse capacity is also affecting fulfillment, inventory management and retail delivery processes. Although AI-powered inventory planning and automation systems are becoming increasingly widespread in modern e-commerce, it was reported that all of Wildberries’ major warehouses had been taken out of operation and that approximately one-third of its total storage capacity had been lost.

Kremlin-Linked Source Warns of a “Wave of Bankruptcies”

It remains uncertain whether the support requested for Russian e-commerce brands will be provided. A source close to the Kremlin described the developments at Wildberries as a “serious blow” to the economy and said there were not enough funds available to cover sellers’ losses. The source said, “There will be a wave of bankruptcies. No one has that much money to support the sellers.” (Russian e-commerce brands)