In March, McDonald’s closed its 850 restaurants in the nation - where it employs 62,000 people - including its iconic Pushkin Square location. It continued to pay its staff in the nation.
Yet today, it has gone a step further, announcing in a statement: “After more than 30 years of operations in the country, McDonald’s Corporation announced it will exit the Russian market and has initiated a process to sell its Russian business.”
The company stated it would seek to have a Russian buyer hire its employees and pay them until the sale closes. It didn’t identify a prospective buyer. McDonald’s announced it intends to begin removing golden arches and other symbols and signs with its name.
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As part of the exit, McDonald’s expects to record a non-cash charge of about $1.2 billion to $1.4 billion.
“The humanitarian crisis caused by the war in Ukraine, and the precipitating unpredictable operating environment, have led McDonald’s to conclude that continued ownership of the business in Russia is no longer tenable,” it announced in a statement.
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Chief executive Chris Kempczinski stated that the “dedication and loyalty to McDonald’s” of employees and hundreds of Russian suppliers made it difficult to leave.
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“However, we have a commitment to our global community and must remain steadfast in our values,” Mr. Kempczinski announced in a statement, “and our commitment to our values means that we can no longer keep the arches shining there.”
As it attempts to sell its restaurants, McDonald’s said it plans to begin removing golden arches and other symbols and signs with its name.
It said it will keep its trademarks in Russia.
The first McDonald’s in Russia opened in the middle of Moscow over three decades ago, shortly after the fall of the Berlin Wall.
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It was a powerful symbol of the easing of Cold War pressures between the United States and the Soviet Union.
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McDonald’s choice to leave comes as other American food and beverage giants, including Coca-Cola, Pepsi, and Starbucks, have halted or closed operations in Russia in the face of western sanctions.
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Corporations from British energy giants Shell and BP to French carmaker Renault have pulled out of Russia, taking a hit to their bottom lines as they seek to sell their holdings there.
McDonald’s announced it expects to record a charge against earnings of between 1.2 billion dollars (£980 million) and 1.4 billion dollars (£1.1 billion) over leaving Russia.
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