The 28th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum will take place from June 18-21, 2025. This year, SPIEF’s theme is “Common Values – The Foundation of Growth in a Multipolar World.”
Key facts
About 150 events are scheduled to be held during the forum, which will be divided into five main groups: “The World Economy: A New Platform of Global Growth,” “The Russian Economy: A New Quality of Growth,” “A Human Being in a New World,” “The Environment for Living” and “Technologies: Aspiration for Leadership.” Just like previous forums, this one will host thematic spaces, the forums of small, medium-sized and creative businesses, the Business G20 group, the SPIEF Academy and the SPIEF Junior forum.
The forum will also feature 19 business panels: Russia – Africa, Russia – Bahrain, Russia – Brazil, Russia – Vietnam, Russia – EU, Russia – India, Russia – Indonesia, Russia – Iran, Russia – Kazakhstan, Russia – Kyrgyzstan, Russia – China, Russia – Latin America, Russia – Mongolia, Russia – UAE, Russia – Oman, Russia – Thailand, Russia – Uzbekistan, Russia – South Africa, EAEU – ASEAN. In addition, the International Youth Economic Forum “Day of the Future” will take place as part of SPIEF.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is traditionally expected to speak at the plenary session of the forum on June 20.
The SPIEF will include the cultural festival “St. Petersburg Seasons” and some sports events.
History
The St. Petersburg International Economic Forum is the premier annual economic conference in Russia. It has been held since 1997. Until 2007, it was called the St. Petersburg Economic Forum. In 2020, SPIEF was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic.
At SPIEF, heads of state, finance ministers, chiefs of Russian and foreign companies, financiers and scientists meet to discuss economic issues facing Russia, the markets of developing countries and the world as a whole.
Every year, the forum brings together more than 10,000 participants representing over 100 countries, with a record 21,000 participants from 139 countries and territories gathered in 2024. The work of the SPIEF is arranged in the form of plenary sessions, roundtable discussions, exhibitions, video conferences and presentations. Since 2005, a Russian president has taken part in the forum: From 2005-2007 and from 2012-2024 it was Vladimir Putin, and from 2008-2011 it was Dmitry Medvedev. Traditionally, the forum is accompanied by an extensive cultural program, featuring concerts and exhibitions.
The event is distinguished by its practical focus. Since 2010, several hundred investment agreements and memorandums have been signed as part of the SPIEF for a total amount of over $775 billion. In 2013, 102 agreements were concluded for a total amount of 9,600 billion rubles (about $320 billion), which is still the largest figure in the history of the forum. In 2023, the disclosed value of agreements stood at 3,860 billion rubles, and in 2024 it was 6,492 billion rubles. Since 2016, one or more countries receive the status of a SPIEF guest. The first guest country of the forum was Italy. In 2025, the guest country of the SPIEF is the Kingdom of Bahrain.
Venue
In 2025, SPIEF will be held at Expoforum for the ninth time since 2016. From 2006-2015, it was held at Lenexpo, and in 1997-2005 at the Taurida Palace.
Organizers and partners
In 2006, the SPIEF was organized by the Russian Economic Development and Trade Ministry. In 2007, a permanent SPIEF Foundation was created to hold the forum, which was renamed the Roscongress Foundation in 2015, with Alexander Stuglev appointed as director. The official budget of the event is not disclosed. Most of the forum’s income is made up of funds from sponsors and registration fees of participants, with the cost of a standard participant package in 2025 starting at 990,000 rubles ($12,600) when purchased in advance. Funds for the SPIEF are also allocated from the city budget of St. Petersburg.
More than 100 organizations and companies have been named forum partners in 2025. The title partners of SPIEF-2025 are VEB.RF and the state corporation Rosatom, and other main sponsors and partners include VTB Bank, Gazprom, Gazprom Neft, Gazprombank, NPS Group, Novatek, PSB, Sber and SBP. The partner airline is Aeroflot, the strategic partner is Rosseti and the official car of the forum is Tank – a brand of the Chinese manufacturer Great Wall Motor.
TASS is the media partner of the event.
Here’s the forum’s website: forumspb.com.
