Russian Billionaires Contribute $5.6 Billion to Putin’s 2026 War Budget, Covering Over 1% of Spending

Russia’s wealthiest businesspeople have contributed 471 billion roubles (more than $5.6 billion) to the government this year through what authorities describe as voluntary donations, helping finance the country’s budget as military and security spending continues to rise.

The contributions, discussed at a closed-door meeting with President Vladimir Putin in March, have covered more than 1% of government spending, according to state budget documents. Most of the businesspeople who attended the meeting are under Western sanctions, while the Kremlin has not publicly disclosed the full list of participants with Putin saying in September that “hundreds of billions” of roubles had been donated following the meeting.

Russia expects to record a budget deficit of 7.3 trillion roubles, equivalent to 3.2% of gross domestic product (GDP), this year. That is twice the government’s initial deficit target of 1.6% of GDP. Without the contributions, the deficit could have risen to 3.4% of GDP, according to the budget documents.

The Kremlin said the businessman who proposed the initiative argued that wealthy Russians who built their fortunes during the 1990s through connections with the state had a responsibility to contribute to public finances.

Russia Turns to New Revenue Sources

The donations, recorded in budget documents as “voluntary receipts”, have generated more revenue than the corporate windfall tax, which was paid largely by metals and fertiliser companies that benefited from high global commodity prices.

The government is also planning to raise 385 billion roubles in 2026 from the sale of assets seized from private businesses in recent years. The asset transfers form part of a major redistribution of property since the privatisations of the 1990s. Authorities have justified the seizures by citing alleged legal violations, corruption and foreign ownership of strategically important assets.

Russia also raised taxes and increased borrowing in 2025 to finance its budget deficit while maintaining expenditure on the military and security services. Military and security spending is planned to account for 38% of total government expenditure this year, underlining the pressure the war in Ukraine continues to place on public finances.

As the conflict approaches the end of its fifth year, the government is seeking additional revenue sources, including further tax increases planned for 2027 and measures to curb tax evasion.

One proposed tax increase is expected to generate an additional 1 trillion roubles in 2027 by targeting income from bank deposits as such earnings have become a significant source of income for many Russians amid high interest rates.