Cards on the table: which state-owned companies may go public in 2025

In 2025, the Russian Ministry of Finance plans to conduct an IPO of two state-owned companies, including the already announced exit of Dom.Russia" and another corporation, the name of which will be announced in the near future, the ministry said earlier. Russian Railways, Rosatom, Rostec, and VEB are among the likely candidates.Russian Federation, Russian Post, SIBUR, and Rostelecom subsidiaries, although some placements may be postponed due to sanctions pressure. The IPO of state-owned companies will significantly replenish the deficit budget, attract investments from major market players, while increasing their transparency and stimulating the growth of the stock market. Experts are confident that the privatization of state-owned companies can become a tool that is consistently used to replenish the budget.

Which state-owned companies are planning to privatize

The Russian Ministry of Finance has scheduled an IPO of two state—owned companies for 2025, in addition to the already announced Dom placement.Russia" is preparing to launch another one on the stock exchange. This was announced to journalists earlier by Deputy Finance Minister Alexei Moiseev. According to him, the name of the second organization from the list for privatization will be announced in the near future.

Among the likely candidates in addition to "Dom.The Russian Federation is called Russian Railways, said Dmitry Tselishchev, Managing director of the investment company Rikom-Trust. In addition, Rosatom, Rostec, and VEB are in the focus of attention.Russian Federation and Russian Post. At the same time, investors will be most interested in large infrastructure and financial issuers with an understandable business and a transparent dividend policy.

The oil and gas company SIBUR and Rostelecom's subsidiaries, Solar or the IT company RTK—TSOD, which were mentioned earlier, are also among the possible candidates for an IPO, said Natalia Milchakova, a leading analyst at Freedom Finance Global.

In addition, Atomenergoprom, a company from the electric power sector with stable profits and a high credit rating, may enter the IPO, said Alexey Primak, founder of the Institute of Financial and Investment Technologies.

Izvestia sent inquiries to all the mentioned state-owned companies.

The placement of shares of state-owned companies on the stock exchange (IPO) can significantly expand the number of financial instruments available for trading, increase the share of companies that regularly pay dividends, and attract the interest of both private and institutional investors. In addition, this process increases the transparency of companies' work and strengthens their discipline in the market, that is, it makes their activities more open.

The company's listing on the stock exchange increases its transparency, as public organizations are required to disclose financial statements, major transactions and development plans, and management becomes accountable to shareholders and the regulator, the expert explained. This encourages more efficient use of resources, cost optimization, increased profitability, and the introduction of modern corporate practices. As a result, publicity improves the quality of management, strengthens the reputation and financial stability of the company.

IPOs also help to increase the economic efficiency of state corporations by attracting capital for new investment projects. For companies, privatization serves as a way to reduce their debt burden and find new sources of financing for development.

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How will the IPO of state-owned companies affect the development of the financial market

The larger companies go public, the higher the chance of doubling the capitalization of the Russian stock market by 2030 — to fulfill the task set by the President of the Russian Federation. According to experts, in 2026-2029, initial public offerings in the amount of 6-8 trillion rubles should be held annually, while in 2025 this goal will not be met, analyst Natalia Milchakova notes. This means that in future years it will be important to bring even more companies to the IPO.

"Achieving the target will require the stabilization of the geopolitical situation, the return of foreign funds, strengthening the role of private investors and corporate investment, as well as an overall improvement in the investment climate," Dmitry Tselishchev said.

In addition to privatization, measures to stimulate private investors (for example, tax incentives and new investment products) are important to achieve the goals set by the president for the development of the financial market, the expert added.

The Russian government, together with the Bank of Russia, is developing incentives for the development of the financial market, including subsidizing listing costs for small technology companies, Deputy Finance Minister Ivan Chebeskov said earlier.

The head of the Bank of Russia, Elvira Nabiullina, also announced the launch of a cost compensation mechanism for SMEs when going public. According to her, this is a particularly timely measure, since small companies are extremely sensitive to high loan rates and the ability to attract capital through the market is more important for them.

Incentives for IPOs of state-owned companies, such as temporary tax breaks or partial exemption from dividends, can have a strong impact on their entry into the stock exchange, said Igor Rastorguev, a leading analyst at AMarkets. Such measures will help attract private investment. As a result, this will lead to an increase in the number of state-owned companies that have decided to go public, a more active and deeper stock market, an honest assessment of organizations and the development of long-term investments, which will ultimately support economic growth.

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Why do state-owned companies need to be privatized?

The state will receive a direct effect from the IPO in the form of funds from the sale of part of the state-owned stake. So, from the IPO "Dom.The Ministry of Finance plans to receive up to 20 billion rubles, and an IPO of one of Rostelecom's subsidiaries may bring another 5-10 billion.

In 2025, the budget includes revenues of 100 billion from the privatization of state property, and potential IPOs may make up a significant part of these funds.

In conditions of budget deficit, the privatization of state-owned companies is becoming an important tool for replenishing its revenue side, Alexey Primak notes. The placement of shares can bring in hundreds of billions of rubles, allowing to finance social and investment programs without attracting additional loans.

The Russian budget deficit remains an urgent problem: in 2025, it is projected at 5.74 trillion rubles, or 2.6% of GDP, according to budget amendments submitted to the State Duma. In this context, even relatively small proceeds from privatization and IPOs help partially offset the deficit and finance the state's social obligations.

The authorities use IPOs for two main purposes, explained Vasily Kutyin, Ingo Bank's Director of analytics. The first is to replenish the revenue side of the budget and reduce the deficit, and the second is to attract investments and new technologies to improve the efficiency of the public sector. The government also motivates the management of state-owned companies to focus on publicity so that companies become more transparent and manageable.

Nevertheless, the situation for an IPO is unfavorable due to the mass of risks, Dmitry Tselishchev noted. According to him, geopolitical uncertainty remains, new sanctions are possible, and the issue of transparency of companies remains. All these factors can limit the interest of both foreign and Russian investors, reducing the attractiveness of placements.

IPOs of state-owned companies can become a regular source of budget revenue and a growth factor for the stock market if large companies regularly enter the market, distribute dividends and maintain investor interest, Natalia Milchakova noted. This means that for a sustainable effect, it is necessary for state-owned companies to systematically issue shares, rather than appearing there randomly and rarely, while investors should see the real benefits of investments.

IPOs of state-owned corporations can become a regular and systematic tool for replenishing the budget and developing the stock market, taking into account the plans of the Ministry of Finance and the needs of the economy, Alexey Primak noted. This means that with proper placement arrangements, the market will be able to consistently attract both public and private investment, which increases financial stability and makes Russia more attractive for investment.

The wave of state—owned companies entering the stock exchange is a strategically important stage for the economy and the stock market, with high growth potential, but also with a number of challenges that will have to be solved by joint efforts of the state, companies and investors, the expert believes.

IPOs of state-owned companies can help replenish the budget and develop the stock market, but in order for this to work continuously, several things need to be done: support private and institutional investors, strengthen trust in infrastructure, improve the rules of the game and create stable economic conditions. Without such measures, even successful individual placements will not be able to influence the market for a long time or attract investors on a regular basis.