Court initiates supervision procedure for bankrupt Microsoft subsidiary
On 23 September, the Moscow Arbitrazh (Commercial) Court imposed a supervision procedure on Microsoft Rus LLC, a Russian subsidiary of the US Microsoft Corporation, Russian media reported.
The decision was made as part of the bankruptcy case that the company initiated at the end of May. Supervision is the initial stage of bankruptcy proceedings. The court scheduled a hearing of the bankruptcy case on its merits for 17 March 2026.
Microsoft stopped selling software and new products in Russia in 2022, but continued to serve its customers until 2025. An attorney for the company told the court that in 2024 it had just one remaining customer for technical support services, but that customer had suspended the services in 2025. According to the attorney, the company has no stable source of income for further operation in Russia and repayment of its liabilities to creditors, so it was forced to file for bankruptcy.
Microsoft Rus's total debt amounts to RUB 1.52bn, and the money owed to one of its creditors has been repaid, according to information presented at the court hearing. In response to the court's question whether the company is ready to consider an amicable settlement with creditors, its attorney said that "such a scenario is not being considered at the moment".
The IT giant's Russian clients have sued the Russian subsidiary. In 2022, Microsoft Rus was sued for RUB 34.7 million, in 2023 for RUB 170 million, in 2024 for RUB 26.6 million, and in 2025 for RUB 110 million. The plaintiffs included companies such as Severstal, Sitronics, Uralkali, the National Settlement Depository, VTB, MegaFon, Gazprombank, and Lenta. In total, as RIA Novosti reports, the Microsoft subsidiary received more than 30 similar claims since 2022, all of which were satisfied.
In particular, this April, in a claim at the Moscow Arbitrazh (Commercial) Court, Gazprombank recovered from Microsoft Rus more than $943,000, representing roughly $887,000 in unjust enrichment in the form of an unearned advance payment under a 17 September 2021 contract for the provision of Microsoft Unified Support services, plus interest.
The purpose of supervision at the beginning of the bankruptcy proceedings is to ascertain Microsoft Rus's financial condition. At this stage, interim measures may be imposed, transactions may be challenged, and controlling persons may be charged with subsidiary liability. The supervision procedure is also needed to form a register of creditors who will meet to decide how the bankruptcy process should go. Subsequently, Microsoft Rus's property, unsold inventory, trademarks, and so forth, may be put up for sale.