Apple fined $500,000 in Europe for violating sanctions against Russia
Apple’s European subsidiary has been fined £390,000 ($516,110) in the UK for a payment to a Russian streaming platform.
Apple’s European subsidiary has been fined £390,000 ($516,110) in the UK for a payment to a Russian streaming platform.
Bloomberg reports that Apple Distribution International Ltd. transferred £635,618 to Russian streaming platform Okko LLC in 2022. ADI, based in the Republic of Ireland, voluntarily reported these payments, which were made through British banks, to government authorities.
At the time of both payments in June and July 2022, Okko was under UK sanctions imposed due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The UK Financial Sanctions Enforcement Authority said Apple relied on its subsidiaries to process payments, conduct sanctions compliance checks and conduct due diligence. In response to the fine, Apple said it «takes sanctions compliance very seriously».
«After discovering two payments to a developer who had become affiliated with a sanctioned entity a few days earlier, we immediately and proactively notified the UK government», the company added.
Independent lawyers believe that Apple was not trying to circumvent the sanctions, but was simply slow to update its payment systems and failed to notice «red flags» in payments to Russians.
Recall that in February 2026, Apple began restricting purchases, subscriptions, and other transactions for Russians whose data matched information from sanctions lists.
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