According to an assessment by the Economic Policy Research Center (EPRC), the expansion of the Russian marketplace Wildberries in Georgia poses a threat to the country.
This is stated in a new report by the center, which provides a detailed analysis of the risks created by ties with the company for Georgian brands featured on its platform, consumers, commercial banks, and the state as a whole.
Wildberries is an e-commerce platform frequently referred to as the “Russian Amazon.”
By late August 2026, strikes launched from Ukraine had disabled at least eight Wildberries warehouses, with more than 20 of the company’s facilities sustaining damage.
The EPRC notes that while Wildberries’ warehousing capacities on Russian territory became targets for Ukrainian drones, and the corporation’s financial arm—Wildberries Bank—came under international sanctions, the company began actively deploying not merely a sales network, but its own logistical infrastructure in Georgia and neighboring states.
According to EPRC experts, neighboring countries, including the states of the South Caucasus and Georgia in particular, run the risk of becoming entangled in a “rescue operation” for a business closely linked to the Kremlin and sanctioned Russian entrepreneurs.
“Official data on Wildberries’ commercial infrastructure in Georgia indicates the operation of warehouses, sorting centers, and pick-up points. According to partner guidelines updated on June 4, 2026, sellers from Georgia can select a warehouse or sorting center on an interactive map and review logistics rates, intake regulations, sorting procedures, and delivery times to the end customer.
Consequently, Wildberries’ footprint in Georgia is no longer limited to a network of pick-up points: the company utilizes local infrastructure to receive, process, and forward cargo. At the same time, open sources currently show no evidence of a large-scale distribution hub in the country—a situation similar to that in Azerbaijan,” the EPRC report highlights.
According to the study’s findings, reports emerged as early as September 2025 that local entrepreneurs had been granted the opportunity to sell goods directly via the Wildberries platform.
The EPRC provides a list of Georgian commercial brands currently available to shoppers in Georgia, Russia, and neighboring countries. The report’s authors qualify that the list is likely incomplete, as compiling an exhaustive catalog is hindered by the platform’s lack of filtering by country of origin.
According to the EPRC, the preliminary list of Georgian brands represented on Wildberries includes:
- Borjomi
- Nabeghlavi
- Natakhtari
- Zedazeni
- Gurieli
- Kula
- Badagoni
- Chateau Mukhrani
- Askaneli
- Sarajishvili
- MACH & MACH
- ANOUKI
- Aleksandre Akhalkatsishvili.
“It is important to keep in mind that Wildberries operates under a classic marketplace model. The presence of a particular brand’s goods in the catalog does not automatically mean that sales are being conducted by the manufacturer itself or its official distributor. Products can be listed by rights holders as well as third-party resellers.
At the same time, if a product is introduced to the platform by an independent retailer, manufacturers—provided they have the will to do so—are capable of blocking such operations by utilizing legal instruments for intellectual property protection or contractual levers,” the EPRC publication states.
The organization concludes that Wildberries’ expansion in Georgia extends far beyond an ordinary commercial project or standard online retail for a number of reasons:
- “Wildberries represents a massive Russian trade and financial ecosystem whose affiliation with the Kremlin is widely considered established. The holding’s financial arm—Wildberries Bank—has been included on UK and EU sanctions lists as an institution facilitating resources for the military interests of the Russian authorities; furthermore, independent investigative journalism has shown that the platform is used for procuring logistical supplies for Russian military personnel, including military and dual-use products.
- The lack of effective export and trade control mechanisms in Georgia for such items remains a major challenge, generating substantial risks of illicit trafficking in sanctioned and dual-use goods, as well as their re-export.
- Against this backdrop, the development of Wildberries’ logistics network inside Georgia carries an elevated threat. With a significant portion of warehouse capacity in Russia itself destroyed, international supply chains are taking on critical importance for the marketplace. Georgia risks serving as a link in a regional diversification strategy through which Wildberries seeks to offset losses incurred from hostilities and international restrictions.
- A separate problem stems from drawing Georgian manufacturers into this ecosystem. Products by domestic brands are already being sold on the platform, and local business owners are being offered direct seller status. Whether entrepreneurs realize it or not, such cooperation entails severe reputational fallout that could eventually turn into financial losses.
- Wildberries’ presence creates direct sanctions risks for Georgia’s banking system. The corporate perimeter includes Wildberries Bank, which was placed under EU and UK sanctions in 2026; a five percent stake in it is held by the sanctioned VTB Bank. As Georgian citizens pay for orders using local bank cards, the country’s financial institutions face compliance and transaction due diligence risks. Tellingly, following the imposition of sanctions against Wildberries Bank, the National Bank of Georgia shifted this responsibility onto commercial banks, stating that each institution must independently assess the likelihood of violating the sanctions regime or facilitating its circumvention.
- Consequently, expanding infrastructure tied to a sanctioned financial institution, a Kremlin-backed enterprise, and a supply channel for Russian military requirements cannot legitimately be presented as ‘foreign investment’ or retail sector development;
- If the authorities effectively acquiesce to the expansion of this entity’s presence, fail to enforce rigorous customs and banking oversight over its operations, and if the business and financial sectors display a lack of responsibility, Georgia risks turning into a key logistics and economic hub helping Russian business maintain viability under sanctions and amidst ongoing war. Such a scenario will inevitably trigger severe repercussions for the country’s security and economy,” the authors of the EPRC report conclude.