Asia Tech Wire (May 30) -- Chinese surveillance camera maker Hikvision has suddenly withdrawn from Russia, a recent report said.
Citing industry sources, Russian IT industry media CNews reported that Hikvision quietly withdrew from the Russian market without any warning, catching local customers and partners off guard.
Hikvision is a company backed by Chinese state-owned capital and is one of the world's largest manufacturers of video surveillance systems.
After Western companies pulled out of Russia following the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine war, Hikvision's market share in the country skyrocketed to 70% in 2022.
CNews said in its report that Hikvision suddenly stopped operations without prior notice. Currently, Hikvision's official Russian website is unavailable.
One of the major Russian integrators confirmed the news, stating that Hikvision has suddenly and almost completely stopped shipping its products and is no longer accepting orders for project and channel equipment.
Another company participating in the Russian IT market has revealed that Hikvision's Russian office has undergone massive layoffs. Prior to this, the office had about 100 people.
One market observer linked Hikvision's exit to the new round of sanctions against China by the U.S. authorities.
Hikvision apparently feared U.S. sanctions against Chinese companies, the person said.
On April 17, U.S. Congressmen introduced a bipartisan bill called the No Limits Act, giving Chinese military companies identified by the U.S. government 180 days to exit the Russian market or face full U.S. sanctions.
The bill, which has yet to be voted on, includes a list of more than 50 Chinese companies, including Chery, Haval, Changan and other Chinese automakers that export to Russia, as well as SMIC, Megvii, Hikvision and other Chinese military firms that have already been recognized by the U.S. government.
Three days after the report, Russia's official news agency TASS published on Monday a story titled "Hikvision not leaving Russian market — source".
The TASS report quoted a source as saying that Hikvision had only "downsized the staff in regional offices," leaving "one or two representatives,” and that the reason for the layoffs was a change in its business model.
