In This Story
A Russian court has fined Google more than the world’s GPD for blocking Kremlin-linked accounts on its platforms.
The $2.5 decillion fine — meaning $2.5 trillion trillion trillion — was handed down Tuesday, according to The Independent.
The Russian court has been doubling the fine, which was originally just $100,000 rubles, every week since 2020 because Google hasn’t paid the fine.
The fine came after two Kremlin-linked media outlets won a suit against Google (GOOGL+2.86%) about restrictions placed on their YouTube channel.
Google also banned other Russian outlets that supported Russia’s actions during the war in Ukraine, which added onto the fines, The Independent said.
The tech giant has been scaling back its operation in Russia for a few years now, blocking the creation of new accounts from Russians and restricting Russian nationals’ abilities to make ad money on YouTube.
“We have ongoing legal matters relating to Russia,” Google said of the fine, according to reports. “For example, civil judgments that include compounding penalties have been imposed upon us in connection with disputes regarding the termination of accounts, including those of sanctioned parties.
“We do not believe these ongoing legal matters will have a material adverse effect,” the company said.
Google’s Russian subsidiary filed for bankruptcy in 2022 after Russia seized its bank account.
“The Russian authorities’ seizure of Google Russia’s bank account has made it untenable for our Russia office to function, including employing and paying Russia-based employees, paying suppliers and vendors, and meeting other financial obligations,” a Google spokesperson said at the time, according to Reuters.
