Wildberries Eyes State Support, Seeks Warehouses in Kazakhstan Amid Ukrainian Drone Strikes

July 29, 2026 A woman rides a train past a screen advertising the Wildberries online retailer in Moscow. REUTERS / Anastasia Barashkova Russia's biggest online retailer Wildberries is seeking warehouse space in Kazakhstan after a wave of Ukrainian drone strikes damaged its logistics network, the Kommersant newspaper reported, as the company also holds talks with the Russian government over possible financial support. The Russian government is exploring ways to support Wildberries and businesses that sell on its platform following the attacks, with state-controlled lender VTB expected to play a central role, two sources told Reuters on Wednesday. The Kremlin confirmed to Reuters that discussions took place but said no decisions have been made. Kommersant, citing four commercial real estate market sources, reported Wednesday that Wildberries is looking for about 100,000 square meters (1.1 million square feet) of warehouse space in Kazakhstan. One source told the newspaper the company was prepared to lease all available warehouse capacity in the country. The move is intended to protect part of the company's logistics network from Ukrainian drone attacks, the sources said. Finding sufficient warehouse space in Kazakhstan may prove difficult. According to real estate consultancy NF Group, Kazakhstan had 1.9 million square meters of modern logistics space at the end of 2025, with a vacancy rate of just 5.8%. Stanislav Akhmedzyanov, managing partner at IBC Global, told Kommersant that no single warehouse block of 100,000 square meters currently exists in Kazakhstan. As of the end of June, only around 130,000 square meters of warehouse space was available nationwide, scattered across several cities. Average warehouse rents stood at 5,180 tenge per square meter per month, equivalent to 854.3 rubles ($10.76) per square meter per month, or about 10,300 rubles ($129.78) per square meter annually, Kommersant cited NF Group as saying. That is broadly comparable with warehouse rents in Moscow and the surrounding region. Kommersant's sources said Wildberries is also exploring additional warehouse expansion in Russia, but owners of vacant facilities have become reluctant to sign new lease agreements due to the risk of drone attacks. In a statement cited by Kommersant, the company said that it was continuing with planned construction of logistics facilities in countries where it operates, including logistics centers of more than 100,000 square meters in Almaty and more than 160,000 square meters in Astana. Wildberries said its immediate priority was redistributing inventory across its warehouse network to improve inventory turnover and support its business partners. Drone attacks in recent weeks have damaged at least seven Wildberries warehouses, destroying about 10% of the company's storage capacity, disrupting operations and inflicting losses on tens of thousands of merchants that sell through the platform. The company has announced a relief package for merchants that sell their goods on its platform including reduced storage fees, promotional discounts for select products and waived regional transit charges. Last week, it said it would freeze loan repayments for small and medium-sized businesses whose inventory was destroyed. However, some merchants have complained that the compensation payouts fell well short of the value of their lost goods. Sources told Reuters that government support under discussion could include loans from state-owned banks to Wildberries or its sellers, as well as tax breaks or subsidies. VTB First Deputy CEO Dmitry Pyanov told Reuters that the bank would be open to providing lending support if requested. Ukraine has said it targeted Wildberries because of its alleged role in supplying the Russian military, a claim that the company denies. A Ukrainian defense industry executive also cited the company's partnership with VTB, Russia's second-largest bank. Read this article in Russian at The Moscow Times' Russian service. Read more about: Wildberries , Kazakhstan , Business , Ukraine war Sign up for our free weekly newsletter Our weekly newsletter contains a hand-picked selection of news, features, analysis and more from The Moscow Times. You will receive it in your mailbox every Friday. Never miss the latest news from Russia. Preview Subscribers agree to the Privacy Policy We sent a confirmation to your email. Please confirm your subscription. A Message from The Moscow Times: Dear readers, We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent." These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." 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