Raiffeisen Bank to change CEO after unsuccessful attempts to leave Russia

Austria's Raiffeisen Bank International has announced a CEO change in June 2026. Michael Höllerer, its former CFO, will become the bank's CEO. RBI is one of the few Western banks still operating in Russia. Despite statements about its intention to leave this market, the bank has not yet been able to find a buyer that would satisfy both Russia and the West. And it does not intend to leave the country without compensation.

Michael Höllerer will become CEO of Raiffeisen Bank International from July 1, 2026, he has been selected by a decision of the supervisory board, RBI said on December 17. But his appointment will still need to be approved by the authorities, the bank said.

Höllerer will succeed Johann Strobl, 66, who decided not to seek an extension to his contract, which expires in February 2027, RBI said in a statement.

Höllerer was RBI's CFO from 2020 to 2022, after which he ran Raiffeisenlandesbank Niederoesterreich Wien, RBI's largest shareholder and one of Austria's most influential lenders, Bloomberg noted.

Raiffeisen Bank International is changing its head after several years of unsuccessful attempts to sell its division in Russia, Bloomberg writes. RBI has accumulated more than €5 billion in profits in the country, which it cannot withdraw due to currency and financial restrictions. So far, RBI has failed to find a buyer, which would have received the approval of both the authorities of Xi and the leadership of Western countries, the agency says. In parallel, the bank is trying to increase the share of proceeds from its other Eastern European subsidiaries, including the Ukrainian one, it added.

Höllerer's main task will be to resolve this perennial dilemma, Bloomberg believes. Strobl said in October 2024 that Raiffeisen Bank International was not ready to just leave the Russian market: "We are not yet in a position where we can exit without any compensation," he said(quoted by Reuters). And almost a year later, he said that the issue of leaving Russia was not entirely in RBI's power: "We realized that deconsolidation of our business [in Russia] is something we can work on, but it's out of our hands. There are too many decision makers involved," he argued in an interview with Bloomberg.

RBI has been demanded to leave Russia by regulators and foreign governments, but Russian authorities are reluctant to allow this as the bank remains one of the few remaining access points to Swift's global interbank payments system, Financial Times sources said in October.

RBI shares fell by 1.43% in Vienna on December 17. But in comparison with the beginning of 2025 they are now 88% more expensive. Analysts' opinions on the bank's shares are divergent: a total of eight recommend "buy" the securities, but four advise "hold" and two more advise "sell", The Wall Street Journal shows. The average target price of €34.55 is 7% lower than the current price.

This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor