Russia seizes management of Nestlé, Auchan and former Leroy Merlin assets
Russia has taken temporary control of the Russian operations of Swiss food giant Nestlé, French retailer Auchan, and the former Leroy Merlin home improvement chain, transferring authority to a little-known Moscow-registered company with ties to Russia's security apparatus.
President Vladimir Putin signed Decree No. 661 on Thursday, 17 September 2026, placing the assets under the "temporary management" of JSC L.E.V. Management. The move strips the foreign owners of operational control while leaving the legal ownership technically unchanged — a mechanism Russia has used repeatedly since its 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
France's Ministry of Economy and Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a joint statement calling the seizure "unjustified" and demanding the decision be reversed. The French government said it is in close contact with the affected companies.
How the transfer works
The Kremlin's press secretary, Dmitry Peskov, said the decree targets companies from what Russia considers "unfriendly" states — countries that have imposed sanctions on Moscow or supported Ukraine's defense. He cited the companies' home countries' alleged involvement in attacks on Russian civilian infrastructure as justification.
Peskov emphasized that this represents only "temporary control" and that no decisions had been made about eventual transfer or sale.
For the companies involved, however, the distinction is largely theoretical. Under Russia's temporary administration framework, foreign owners lose the ability to manage their assets, make operational decisions, or access profits. Previous cases suggest this status often precedes forced sales at steep discounts or de facto nationalisation.
A shell company with security ties
The entity now managing these major Western assets, L.E.V. Management, was registered in Moscow in October 2024 with an authorised capital of just 15,000 rublos — roughly equivalent to a week's minimum wage in Portugal. The company reported losses of about 15,000 rublos for 2025 and listed a single employee.
According to reporting by Novaya Gazeta Europe, the company appointed Andrey Krayushkin as CEO on 10 September 2026 — only seven days before Putin's decree. Krayushkin is identified as a former major-general in Russia's Ministry of Interior, the country's internal security agency.
Information about L.E.V. Management's shareholders has not been made public, and the company appears to have had no significant commercial activity prior to its appointment.
Companies caught in the net
The decree affects:
• Nestlé's Russian subsidiary — The Swiss company confirmed it is assessing the situation and reiterated its commitment to protecting its rights and maintaining operations. Its stakes in Nestlé Russia and Nestlé Kuban are now under external administration.
• Auchan's Russian operations — The France-based retailer, part of the Mulliez family empire, operates dozens of stores across Russia. Its subsidiary said it continues to operate normally and has asked authorities for clarification.
• The former Leroy Merlin chain — The French home improvement group Adeo sold 99.99% of its Russian entity, legally known as Le Monlid LLC and rebranded as Lemana Pro, to a UAE-registered company, Scenari Holding LP, in December 2023. Despite that sale, the entity has now also been placed under L.E.V. Management's control.
The decree also covers logistics companies FM Logistic and Batilogistic.
A pattern of asset seizures
Russia has used the temporary administration mechanism to take control of dozens of Western companies since the war began. The legal basis is rooted in Decree No. 302 of 25 April 2023, which allows state agencies to assume control of assets belonging to entities from "unfriendly" countries under broad justifications including national security and economic threats.
The most comparable case involves Danone, the French agri-food conglomerate. In July 2023, Putin signed a decree placing Danone's Russian operations under temporary state administration. Yakub Zakriev — Chechnya's agriculture minister and a nephew of Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov — was installed as head of the business, which was renamed Logika Moloka.
An investigation reported by The Moscow Times in April 2026 found that Zakriev and a former Kadyrov assistant, Ruslan Alisultanov, allegedly became billionaires after the seizure, acquiring luxury properties and large bank deposits. Russia lifted the temporary administration on Danone in March 2024, and the business was reportedly slated for sale at a significant discount.
For Nestlé and Auchan, analysts suggest the likelihood of recovering full asset value is low given the precedent set by Danone and other cases.
What this means for investors
For multinational companies with exposure to the Russian market, the decree underscores the legal and financial risks of maintaining operations in a jurisdiction where property rights can be suspended by executive order. The affected companies face months or years of uncertainty, with limited recourse through Russian courts.
Portuguese companies with operations or supply chain links in Russia face knock-on considerations: assets may be written down, contracts may become unenforceable, and management access may be cut off without warning. The Danone precedent suggests that even a sale to a third party — as in Leroy Merlin's case — offers no guarantee of protection.
European governments have condemned the seizures, but diplomatic channels have yielded little leverage. Western sanctions packages have not prevented Russia from continuing to use asset seizures as both an economic tool and a political message.
