In russia, It Is Easier to Close a Company than to Seek Justice in Court

In 2025, a clear trend emerged in russia: businesses are increasingly less likely to try to defend their rights in court and are more often choosing the easier path – closing companies. This is confirmed by statistics: the number of new arbitration disputes has been rapidly declining for the third consecutive year.

Formally, the reasons are clear: increased court fees, economic instability, and problems with payment discipline. But in reality, this is a signal of a loss of confidence in the judicial system as an effective tool for protection. It is telling that after the increase in court fees in the autumn of 2024, the number of lawsuits dropped sharply, and by October, there were by 23% fewer than a year earlier.

Against this background, another figure is even more telling: in 2025, approximately 233,000 companies were liquidated in russia, which is by 15% more than the previous year. In other words, businesses are not just suing less often; they are disappearing altogether more frequently.

russian entrepreneurs are being squeezed out not only by China, which is actively capturing niches in trade and manufacturing, but also by the state itself. The government of the rf is consistently making it harder to do business: taxes are rising, fines are increasing, control is tightening, the role of government agencies in disputes and contracts is expanding.

An additional sign of this pressure is new initiatives such as requirements to change signs and names to “russian equivalents” in order to eradicate Anglicisms. For businesses, this means more expenses, another wave of bureaucracy, and yet another signal: the rules of the game can change at any moment regardless of the interests of entrepreneurs.