Moldova probes Russian taxi app Yandex over security
Moldovan law enforcement agencies are actively monitoring Russian ride-hailing giant Yandex, with the government weighing potential regulatory sanctions over tax evasion and severe cybersecurity risks, Deputy Prime Minister Vladimir Bolea said.
The announcement follows an investigative report revealing that the corporate group generated over €7.0 million (approx. 136.5 million MDL) in annual revenue in Moldova without paying domestic corporate taxes. Officials warned that consumer data handled by the platform remains vulnerable to Russian intelligence exploitation.
Regulatory scrutiny and sanctions review
Bolea, who serves as Minister of Infrastructure and Regional Development, noted that ministers are reviewing foreign entities linked to the Russian Federation under existing sanctions frameworks. Executive decisions will follow technical assessments by state security services.
“A comprehensive assessment of Yandex operations within the Republic of Moldova will continue, leading to executive decisions and concrete measures,” said Bolea during a press briefing in Chișinău.
Addressing concerns over the physical location of company servers in Russia, Bolea referenced remarks by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who linked drone strikes against Yandex infrastructure to disruptions in Russian online bot networks. The minister emphasized that authorities are monitoring all enterprises capable of impacting national security.
Tax evasion and international regulatory penalties
Yandex dominates urban transport in Moldova, handling approximately 40,000 trips daily—nearly half of all taxi rides in Chișinău. Despite its market dominance, the company paid no corporate taxes, routing local operations through its Netherlands-registered holding vehicle, MLU B.V.
The company recently transferred its first payment to the Moldovan state budget: a fine of nearly €40,000 (approx. 780,000 MDL), paid from the United Arab Emirates. The Competition Council imposed the penalty after the firm refused to disclose its registry of Moldovan drivers.
In May 2026, Dutch regulators fined MLU B.V. €100.0 million for illegally transferring customer and driver location records from Norway and Finland to servers based in the Russian Federation.
Legislative overhaul and regional security precedents
Parliament Speaker Igor Grosu conceded that authorities previously harbored illusions regarding the platform's nominal Dutch registration, promising imminent regulatory corrections to protect consumer privacy.
Moldovan lawmakers are advancing legislation requiring digital transport platforms to route all customer payments through licensed domestic financial institutions. The measure also mandates suspensions for any platform contracting drivers unregistered with the National Road Transport Agency. Transport associations estimate uncollected tax revenues from offshore driver contracts exceed 55.0 million MDL (approx. €2.82 million) annually.
Baltic EU members Latvia and Estonia banned Yandex services in 2022, citing national security threats. Moldovan intelligence previously restricted access to yandex.ru in October 2024, as the EU candidate country accelerates efforts to secure its digital perimeter.
Translation by Iurie Tataru
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