The number of billionaires in Russia decreased by more than a quarter last year. This was according to an analysis by the American business magazine Forbes. Where there were still 123 Russian billionaires in the magazine’s 2021 ranking, there were only 88 in 2022. Steel baron Alexei Mordashov has suffered the biggest losses and has seen more than €10 billion evaporate.
Forbes cites the war in Ukraine, sanctions imposed by the West and the economic crisis as the reason for the decline. Nor have the 88 Russians who have so far been allowed to call themselves billionaires (in dollars) escaped the consequences. A total of 68 of them were less wealthy than the previous year.
The biggest loser was Alexei Mordashov (57), the major shareholder of the Russian steel company Severstal. He saw his fortune shrink by $11.1 billion (€10.4 billion) to $18.4 billion (€17.2 billion). Therefore, the Russian steel industry was one of the sectors most affected by Western sanctions. Since the beginning of the year, Severstal shares have lost nearly 45 percent of their value.
The richest businesswoman
Tatjana Bakalchuk (47 years old) also did not have her year. The founder and CEO of Wildberries – Russia’s largest online retailer – saw two-thirds of her wealth rise after shares of major competitor Ozon also fell. The former English teacher lost $8.3 billion (€7.7 billion) and has only $4.7 billion (€4.4 billion) left. She is still the richest businesswoman in Russia.
The top three is closed out by Oleg Tinkoff (55), the man behind the Tinkoff Cycling Team. He can no longer even call himself a billionaire after he sold his stake in credit card company TCS Group for just $260 million (€242 million) to Vladimir Potanin, one of Russia’s most influential oligarchs. Tinkoff is about $5.9 billion (5.5 billion euros) lighter, and now has $870 million (810 million euros).
See also. All about the war between Russia and Ukraine in pictures
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