Russian Digital Development Minister Maksut Shadayev has effectively acknowledged that the state will intervene in the market to pull the loss-making Russian Post out of crisis, and that this will be done by changing the rules for all other players.
In recent years, private companies have captured the most profitable segments — fast commercial delivery and e-commerce services. The state operator has been left with social obligations, regulated tariffs and chronic financial problems. Now, instead of pursuing internal reform, authorities are proposing to redistribute the burden across the entire market.
The key idea is to “level the playing field.” In practice, this means imposing additional requirements, restrictions and costs on private services so they operate under rules as close as possible to those of the state operator. In effect, successful players risk losing flexibility and competitive advantages.
At the same time, the aggressor country’s authorities plan to index postal tariffs, which could ultimately lead to a general increase in delivery costs. If regulation is expanded, businesses will be forced to pass new costs on to customers.
If these initiatives are adopted in a hardline form, private delivery services will come under serious pressure — not because of market competition, but because of state intervention. As a result, the market would lose its development momentum, while consumers would lose choice and affordable prices.
It was previously reported that Russia’s oil and gas revenues in 2025 fell to their lowest level since the coronavirus pandemic.
Russia’s budget could face a significant deficit as early as the beginning of 2026 because of shortfalls in oil and gas revenues, the aggressor country’s government has acknowledged.
Ukrainian intelligence has also said the financial condition of medium and large Russian enterprises continues to deteriorate, showing widening imbalances in the corporate sector.