From June 18 to 21, Saint Petersburg hosted the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), reaffirming its role as Russia’s premier B2G platform. With participation from federal regulators, regional authorities, major business figures, and policy architects, SPIEF-2025 offered a critical lens into the country’s economic trajectory and regulatory direction.

This year, the Forum underscored Moscow’s pivot toward the Global South, digital self-reliance, and tighter control over capital inflows. While international participation remained modest, the Forum crystallized Russia’s policy roadmap: maintain macro stability, build alternative payment rails, embrace fintech under strict oversight, and court investment from “friendly” partners. All while keeping the door to Western business only ajar.

Notably, SPIEF-2025 saw renewed, though discreet, engagement from Western business communities through association-led events and closed-door dialogues. Russian authorities reiterated commitments to fiscal and tax predictability, signaling openness to investment under new terms, yet stressed that any potential re-entry would be selective, politically filtered, and subject to localized compliance standards.

For GR professionals, SPIEF-2025 made clear that stakeholder engagement will increasingly depend on nuanced, sector-specific navigation of emerging legal frameworks, evolving sanctions exposure, and geopolitical fault lines. Informal diplomacy, proximity to domestic priorities, and strategic alignment with domestic development goals are now central to effective GR strategy in Russia.

Our analytical memo provides a deeper exploration of the Forum’s key signals, regulatory implications, and sector-specific outlooks – from digital platforms and finance to foreign capital and market re-entry dynamics.