Speaking at an online press conference on Monday, he said international companies must leave the Russian market for both moral and pragmatic reasons.

Working in Russia is harmful to a company’s reputation, he said, adding that the Russian economy is fast approaching collapse and the government’s economic policy is becoming increasingly unpredictable, as the threat of nationalisation has already been voiced.

Among foreign banks which have not left Russia, in addition to OTP, Kuleba listed Raiffeisen, Citigroup, Société Générale, UniCredit and Intesa Sanpaolo.

“I reiterate my call for them to leave the Russian market as soon as possible and for other governments and consumers to boycott these companies until they close down in Russia,” he said.

OTP chairman and CEO Sándor Csányi announced at a March 4 press conference following the release of the quarterly report that he expects OTP to remain in Russia and Ukraine in the long run.


MTI Photo: Attila Kovács