Google Faces $20 Decillion Fine In Russia; Fine Amounts More Than World's Entire GDP

A Russian court has fined Google about $20 decillion, a figure with 2 followed by 34 zeroes. The amount is far greater than the world’s total GDP, which is estimated by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to be $110 trillion. The massive fine also surpasses Google’s $2 trillion market value. The virtually unpronounceable penalty is for blocking pro-Russian channels on YouTube.

However, the US tech giant, which has been under pressure in Russia for several years, has not yet responded to this matter. “I can’t even pronounce this number, but it is more likely imbued with symbolism,” a Kremlin spokesperson told Russian news agencies, as quoted by The Guardian. “Google should not restrict the actions of our broadcasters, but it does. This should be a reason for Google’s management to pay attention to this and correct the situation,” spokesperson Dmitry Peskov added. 

Russian state media reported recently that a Russian court had earlier ordered Google to restore the YouTube channels or else face mounting charges, with fines doubling every week. In September, the company restricted the creation of new accounts for Russian users. Google had already deactivated AdSense accounts in the country in August and halted serving ads in Russia in March 2022.