Google slapped with fine way greater than earth's GDP by Russia

The fine of two undecillion -- two succeeded by 26 zeroes -- roubles translates to $20 billion trillion trillion.
(File Photo | AP)
(File Photo | AP)
Updated on
1 min read

The restriction of content from 17 pro-Russian government channels on YouTube has led to a court there slapping Google with a fine greater than the world's total GDP, which the International Monetary Fund has estimated to be $110 trillion.

The fine is significantly more than that and at two undecillion -- two succeeded by 26 zeroes -- roubles translates to $20 billion trillion trillion.

Google's parent company Alphabet's market value of $2 trillion pales in comparison.

Russian government spokesperson Dmitry Paskov termed the fine as being "filled with symbolism" while acknowledging that "he can't even pronounce the figure right".

Google doesn't seem to be unduly perturbed by the fine.

"Civil judgments that include compounding penalties have been imposed upon us in connection with disputes regarding the termination of accounts, including those of sanctioned parties," Google noted in their recent quarterly earnings report.

"We do not believe these ongoing legal matters will have a material adverse effect (on earnings)," the company had observed.

Google's Russia arm had filed for bankruptcy in 2022 and ended most commercial operations after the Russian government seized control of their accounts a few months since the invasion of Ukraine.

Google search and YouTube though continue to be available in Russia as the internet giant has not pulled out fully. Whether the latest development will put that in jeopardy remains to be seen.

(File Photo | AP)
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