Alexander Schochin: “We will never go back to business as usual”
Late last week, Alexander Schochin, president of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RSPP) and the Russian president’s ombudsman for entrepreneurs’ rights, spoke at length about the economic situation in Russia in an interview with the business news portal RBC. We have summarized the key points for you.
Growth, Key Interest Rate, Ruble Exchange Rate
▪️ “A new investment cycle must begin now; economic growth, which stands at about 1% this year, is clearly insufficient. We have said repeatedly that a growth rate of at least 2% is necessary.”
▪️ “90 to 95 rubles per dollar—that is the exchange rate that satisfies exporters, households at various levels, and companies engaged in import substitution.”
▪️ “The consensus is that an interest rate of 8% is the level at which loans can be utilized for investment.”
Privatization and Popular Capitalism
▪️ “Privatization transactions are economic transactions, and the statute of limitations should apply to them […]. We worked for at least three years to convince the government of the need for such changes, and we were ultimately successful.”
▪️ “Instruments such as federal or regional investment tax credits, tax incentive mechanisms for projects such as Special Investment Contracts (SPIK), Agreements for the Protection and Promotion of Capital Investments (SZPK), etc.—these are where we should focus our main efforts.”
▪️ “The state owns a large number of poorly managed assets. These assets arose, among other things, during the period when many law enforcement and security agencies were engaged in reviewing privatizations.”
▪️ “We must actively enter the market, including with state-owned assets and those managed under third-party administration on other grounds.”
▪️ “There are many opportunities to attract investment and further develop stock market instruments so that they become more attractive to the public. This will enable us to transition to a model of diversified ownership, one that no longer gives the impression that a single oligarch with a majority stake is behind a particular company. This was previously referred to as ‘people’s capitalism’ and, somewhat later, as ‘people’s privatization.’ Such instruments must be used to kickstart a new investment cycle.”
▪️ “We must indeed work toward reducing the state’s role as an economic actor.”
▪️ “At the moment, the task of rapidly changing the structure of demand under current conditions does not present itself. To achieve this, we must prevail and begin a structural transformation in favor of the civilian sectors of the economy and in favor of private demand.”
Legal Certainty and the Investment Climate
▪️ “The most important thing is the business community’s confidence in the future and in the protection of property rights.”
▪️ “Here we need more transparent, more predictable procedures so that the business community isn’t afraid to cooperate with the government. Otherwise, all our incentives and preferences—and all government support—may face the reality that no one is interested in them and that the business community is unwilling to take risks. But without this interest and willingness to take risks, many projects—especially in the infrastructure sector—cannot get off the ground without government support.”
▪️ “We do not believe that all entrepreneurs are innocent lambs, but we assume the integrity of both the taxpayer and the entrepreneur who applies for government aid. Evidence of dishonest behavior must actually be evidence—unfortunately, we do not see this in every case.”
▪️ “At the same time, it is not always the business community’s fault when systematic violations occur. Sometimes the controls are far too strict, or, conversely, there is a lack of regulation, so that taxpayers cannot verify the integrity of their business partners across multiple levels, and so on. Perhaps the rules need to be changed here.”
▪️ “And it’s important to recognize companies’ right to classify a portion of these costs as production costs, because these aren’t isolated cases—they’re new realities. Drone technologies are already part of industrial security.”
▪️ “The most important thing is that we look to the future with confidence. That’s why the entire economy is undoubtedly focused on ensuring that victory comes as soon as possible.”
▪️ “Not even ‘business as usual’—we will never return to the situation at the beginning of the millennium, or at least not to the situation before 2014 or before 2022. That is the new reality.”
Small Businesses and Sole Proprietors
▪️ “The self-employed are the segment of the economy focused on entrepreneurial initiative and private demand.”
▪️ “In fact, small and medium-sized enterprises are a key driver of economic growth and employment.”
▪️ “Currently, the ‘mortality rate’ of small businesses is relatively high—higher than the ‘birth rate.’ On the one hand, this is a natural process: some businesses close, others are started, and so on. On the other hand, ‘negative growth’ is already evident. That is why support for the self-employed and small and medium-sized enterprises is a key factor in a new model geared toward private demand, including private investment demand.”
Source: German-Russian Chamber of Foreign Trade, Alexander Schochin: “We Will Never Return to Business as Usual,” August 25, 2026.