The company that owns the dating app, Tinder has concluded plans to leave Russia over a year after the invasion of Ukraine saw a wave of international companies close or suspend their Russian operations.
Match Group said on Tuesday that it will quit Russia by June 30 because ‘we are committed to protecting human rights.’
The Texas-based firm revealed this in its annual impact report, a summary of how the company is meeting goals on the environment, human rights, and good governance.
‘Our brands are taking steps to restrict access to their services in Russia and will complete their withdrawal from the Russian market by June 30, 2023,’ it said.
Africa Today News, New York reports that quite a lot of major Western companies have ended or suspended their operations in protest to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, as Chinese companies expand their presence.
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And as it seeks to reduce its dependence on the West, Russia has been shoring up its domestic technology sector in recent years.
Tinder’s exit also comes when Russia has been strengthening laws to regulate the tech sector, against a backdrop of growing political repression.
The European police agency Europol said in September that dating apps were among the online platforms being ‘hijacked’ by individuals for human trafficking purposes, drawing attention to the plight of Ukrainian refugees.
Jeff Perkins, executive director at Friends Fiduciary, said that a business that trades on trust had good reason to leave Russia.
He said: ‘It’s not a good look for a trusted brand to be continuing operations in a nation where the head of state has been indicted by the International Criminal Court.’
The ICC issued an arrest warrant on March 17 against Putin, accusing him of the war crime of illegally deporting hundreds of children from Ukraine.