Posted on Mar 12, 2022

Deloitte has said it is ditching its Russia and Belarus member firms, becoming the last of the Big Four audit firms to announce it is exiting Russia following Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.

"We will separate our practice in Russia and Belarus from the global network of member firms. Deloitte will no longer operate in Russia and Belarus," Deloitte’s global CEO Punit Renjen said in a 7 March statement.

PwC and KPMG said on 6 March they were cutting ties with their member firms in Russia and EY said on 7 March that it was pulling out of the market.

All of the Big Four firms last week condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine, but have now moved further, committing to cut off their Russia operations which employ thousands of staff amid mounting pressure on Western firms to divest from the country.

“Western businesses must divest now,” former Ukrainian finance minister Natalie Jaresko told Financial News. “The financial cost will be the same later if Putin is able to destroy our peace, so protect your firms’ reputations, protect our rules-based world.”

"While we know this is the right decision, it will have an impact on Deloitte’s ~3,000 professionals located in Russia and Belarus," Deloitte boss Renjen’s 7 March statement said.

"We know our colleagues in Russia and Belarus have no voice in the actions of their government. We will support all impacted colleagues during this transition and do all we can to assist them during this extremely difficult time," the statement added.

Professional services giant Accenture said on 3 March it was pulling out of Russia, closing down its 2,300-strong operation in the country.

Deloitte was the first of the Big Four audit firms to say it was thinking of pulling out of Russia, saying it was reviewing its “business and presence in Russia” in a 2 March statement.

Fellow audit firm Grant Thornton said on 1 March that it had ended links with FBK — its member firm in Russia — with immediate effect.

Original post: https://www.fnlondon.com/articles/deloitte-pulls-out-of-russia-and-belarus-over-ukraine-war-20220307