Russia’s Yandex yearly profit surges 53%

Russian search engine giant Yandex reported a 53 per cent increase in full-year revenue to $8.72 billion, driven by organic growth across the business, from search and advertising to e-commerce and ride-hailing, its statement said on Thursday.

Adjusted net income increased by 155 per cent to 27.4 billion rubles, but a 6.3-billion-ruble impairment of intangible assets and investments in business expansion led to a net loss of 6.3 billion rubles in the fourth quarter, the statement showed.

The company reported a growth in revenue across all its businesses. Its employee numbers increased by 26 per cent to 26,361 in 2023, driven by accelerated hiring in its search, cloud, and entertainment divisions.

Yandex’s parent company, Yandex NV, agreed to spin off some assets in a cash and shares deal worth $5.2 billion last week. Yandex said the deal had won unanimous approval from the board.