Report: Playrix closes all offices in Russia and Belarus, relocating staff to other countries

Playrix has reportedly decided to completely leave Russia and Belarus, closing its offices in these countries. The mobile publisher, known for its Scapes franchise, will relocate the remaining staff to other countries.

What happened?

Information about Playrix’s decision to leave the Russian and Belarusian markets appeared on Ukrainian IT outlet AIN.UA, which cited an internal statement from the company’s founders, Igor and Dmitri Bukhman.

According to the report, Playrix will move people who are still working in Russia and Belarus to its new offices in other regions. The Gardenscapes developer will also cease all business operations in these countries due to a “new round of escalation” in the Russia-Ukraine war.

Here is a translation of the Bukhman brothers’ message, a screenshot of which was posted by AIN.UA:

The company has undergone many changes since the beginning of the war in Ukraine. We no longer do business in Russia and Belarus; we have opened offices in other countries and started relocating employees. A new round of escalation has now begun. To maintain the operational stability of the Playrix Group, we have decided to:

• • Close all Playrix offices in these countries;

• • Cease operations of our studios in Russia and Belarus;

• • Relocate employees from Russia and Belarus to other countries.

We have a difficult period ahead, but we are confident that our team will cope with it. For our part, we will do our best for it. Take care of yourself.

It is worth noting that Playrix hasn’t commented on the report and hasn’t made any official statements yet.

How many people work at Playrix in Russia and Belarus?

• As of March 2022, Playrix employed around 4,000 people across the globe. Despite being headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, the vast majority of its employees are located in Russia and Ukraine.
• The company has 16 offices in Russia including the ones in Moscow, Saint Petersburg, Kazan, and Kaliningrad. At least 1,500 people worked there.
• Plaryix also has a studio in Minsk, but the exact number of Belarusian employees is unknown.
• It is unclear how many Russian employees have already relocated since the beginning of the war.  Earlier this year, Igor Bukhman said Playrix helped 10% of its Russian staff move abroad.
• As of October 5, Playrix was still posting new job openings on Russian job sites. So it is fair to assume that many of those 1,500 people may still be located in the country.