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German hypermarket chain Globus continues operating and opening stores in Russia, while Russian authorities have placed some foreign businesses under state-appointed temporary management. Meduza’s Nov. 10 report says Globus has so far avoided that measure and examines owner Thomas Bruch’s public engagement with Russian officials and his arguments against an exit. The reasons Globus has not been targeted, and its plans for the Russian business, remain unclear.
German hypermarket chain Globus is still operating and opening stores in Russia, even as Russian authorities place some foreign companies’ local businesses under temporary management, according to a Nov. 10 report by Meduza. The report examines how the retailer, whose main shareholder is billionaire Thomas Bruch, has maintained its Russian business while peers face state intervention, but it does not establish that Globus has a guarantee against such action.
Meduza’s report says Globus has continued to open Russian stores during the full-scale war in Ukraine. The company is among the German businesses that have remained in Russia. Citing calculations by the Kyiv School of Economics’ Leave Russia project, the report says Globus ranks second among German companies still operating in Russia by revenue, behind Metro. That ranking is attributed to the project’s calculations; the report does not provide the revenue figures in the supplied material.
The comparison with Metro is significant. Russian President Vladimir Putin placed Metro’s Russian business under temporary management, according to Meduza. That arrangement does not formally transfer ownership, but Meduza says companies in practice can lose control and may later agree to sell on terms they would not otherwise accept. The report says roughly 20 companies have been put under temporary management and identifies Ariston as the only one to have regained operational control.
Globus’s principal shareholder, Thomas Bruch, attended the 2026 St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, Meduza reports. Russian media highlighted his presence, and Russian Direct Investment Fund head Kirill Dmitriev said he hoped German businesspeople would show German politicians “the right path.” Meduza says Bruch was the only business leader among the German guests it identified. The report also recounts Bruch’s earlier public arguments for dialogue with Moscow and his opposition to Globus leaving Russia.
Why Globus Remains Exposed
Globus’s continued presence matters because temporary management can strip foreign owners of practical control even when the legal ownership arrangement has not formally changed. A retailer that continues investing and opening locations in Russia is making a different business choice from companies that have exited, but it remains exposed to decisions by Russian authorities.
The contrast with Metro shows that operating in Russia does not by itself protect a foreign company from state intervention. Meduza reports that German companies have been among those affected and that Russia has taken measures against prominent foreign businesses. Its account does not prove why authorities have spared Globus, or that Bruch’s public engagement influenced any government decision. For readers, the central issue is the gap between a company’s continuing commercial activity and its ability to retain control of that activity.
The report also brings attention to the role of a business owner’s public statements. Bruch has argued for engagement with Moscow and criticized Western policy toward Russia. Those remarks have drawn German media coverage, Meduza says, while Globus has remained in the market. The report presents that relationship as relevant to understanding the company’s position, but does not establish that the statements explain its treatment by the Kremlin.
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The Pressure on Foreign Firms
Russian authorities have used temporary management against a number of foreign-owned businesses that stayed in the country. Meduza describes the measure as a response, in the Russian government’s stated framing, to actions by countries considered “unfriendly.” The report notes that European companies have been particularly affected and that Russian officials have not set out a fully clear rule for which businesses will be targeted.
Meduza points to a recent sequence of cases: Putin placed the Russian business of tobacco company JTI under temporary management on Nov. 5, the report says, and Kommersant reported that a Russian subsidiary of Coca-Cola’s Swiss entity might be a future target. These are different kinds of information: the JTI measure is described as having occurred, while the Coca-Cola-related possibility is a reported forecast, not a confirmed action.
Bruch has publicly discussed the possibility of Globus leaving Russia. In a 2022 interview with Manager Magazin, as quoted by Meduza, he said the company was not considering an exit because it would “probably lead to forced nationalization, and no one would benefit.” Meduza also recalls earlier interviews in which he advocated a separate European approach to Russia and described Western policy as partly responsible for the conflict over Crimea and eastern Ukraine. Those are Bruch’s stated views, not independently established explanations for the war or for Globus’s current position.
“I believe it is time for us to free our policy toward Russia from the influence of the United States, which pursues its own interests, and find our own approach — one that brings us together rather than drives us apart.”
— Thomas Bruch, in a 2017 interview with Die Welt, as quoted by Meduza
Why Globus Has Not Been Targeted
Meduza does not identify an official reason why Globus has avoided temporary management while Metro and other foreign businesses have faced it. The supplied report material does not establish whether the difference reflects political relationships, company-specific factors, timing, or another consideration.
It is also unclear whether Globus plans to keep expanding, change its investment strategy, or make any eventual decision about leaving Russia. The report says the company continues to operate and open stores, but offers no forward-looking company statement or detailed store-opening schedule. Bruch’s public comments cannot by themselves show how the company’s management or Russian authorities will act next.
Temporary management should not be described as a formal change of ownership: Meduza says it does not legally transfer ownership, though it can shift practical control. The report’s account that owners often later agree to sell describes a pattern, not a fixed outcome for every company. The future of any particular business remains dependent on decisions and negotiations not detailed here.
Globus’s Next Russian Moves
The immediate indicator to watch is whether Globus continues announcing or opening Russian stores, and whether the company offers a public explanation of its plans. The supplied report does not name a specific upcoming opening, investment milestone, or corporate announcement.
Any further Russian government action involving Globus would change the picture, but no such measure is confirmed in the material provided. Readers should distinguish official announcements from media reporting about possible targets: the report’s reference to a potential Coca-Cola-related case, for example, is not confirmation that authorities have acted. For now, Globus remains in business in Russia, while the reasons it has avoided the measures applied to some peers remain unconfirmed.
Key Questions
Is Globus still operating in Russia?
Yes. Meduza reports that Globus continues operating and opening stores in Russia during the war.
Has Russia placed Globus under temporary management?
The supplied Meduza report says Globus has avoided temporary management. It does not report that Russian authorities have imposed the measure on the chain.
What happened to Metro’s Russian business?
Meduza reports that Putin placed Metro’s Russian business under temporary management. The report says the arrangement does not formally change ownership but can transfer practical control.
Why does Thomas Bruch oppose leaving Russia?
In a 2022 interview quoted by Meduza, Bruch said an exit would probably lead to forced nationalization. That was his assessment; the report does not establish that nationalization would have been certain.
Is Globus planning to expand further?
The report says the company has continued opening stores, but the supplied material gives no specific future opening schedule or statement about its next investment plans.
Source: meduza.io
