Key facts
- Riccardo Orcel, brother of UniCredit CEO Andrea Orcel, was involved in brokering the sale of the bank's Russian business.
- Riccardo Orcel previously worked as a senior banker at VTB Group, a Russian state-backed bank now under Western sanctions.
- UniCredit confirmed Riccardo Orcel presented a proposal and was appointed an independent adviser for the sale process.
- The bank announced a non-binding deal in May to sell its Russian operations to a UAE-based investor.
- UniCredit will retain its payments business in Russia.
Riccardo Orcel, brother of UniCredit CEO Andrea Orcel and a former senior banker at Russian state-backed VTB Group, played a role in brokering the recent agreement to sell the Italian bank's Russian business. His involvement, previously unreported, highlights the approach taken by UniCredit to divest its operations in Russia.
UniCredit confirmed that Riccardo Orcel presented a proposal regarding their Russian business and was appointed as an independent adviser by the bank's Board. The bank stated that the transaction announced last month was the successful outcome of this process. Riccardo Orcel declined to comment when reached by Reuters.
UniCredit, once one of the largest Western banks in Russia, had maintained its business there despite pressure to exit the country following the war. In May, the bank announced a non-binding deal to sell parts of its Russian bank to an investor based in the United Arab Emirates, intending to retain only its payments business in Russia. The identity of the buyer and its backers remains largely unknown, with Dubai emerging as a key center for business with Russia due to sanctions impacting traditional financial hubs.