Russian billionaires witness significant increase in their wealth since last year: Report

Despite the challenges posed by Western sanctions and global economic instability, many Russian businessmen experienced a significant increase in their profits last year. The latest Forbes Russian billionaire list now includes 110 names, up from 88 the previous year. These businessmen achieved billionaire status due to the recovery of Russia's stock market, which initially plummeted following the country's military intervention in Ukraine but later rebounded as the economy adapted to Western sanctions, as noted by the publication.

Since last March, the combined wealth of Russians featured in the new Forbes ranking has surged from $353 billion to $505 billion. The ten most successful billionaires on the list saw their fortunes increase by a staggering $77.4 billion. Out of those who appeared in both last year's and this year's rankings, 58 individuals experienced growth in their fortunes, totaling $140.3 billion. Notably, Andrey Melnichenko, whose businesses include EuroChem, a fertiliSer producer, and SUEK, a coal producer, emerged as the top-ranked billionaire on the Russian Forbes list for the first time. Melnichenko's fortune more than doubled since last March, skyrocketing from $11.1 billion to $25.2 billion.

Some Russian billionaires' wealth witnessed a decline as well

Despite the overall growth in wealth among Russian billionaires, there were also those who experienced a decline in their fortunes over the course of 2022. Thirteen businessmen saw their combined wealth shrink by a total of $8.5 billion. While some of these losses were attributed to sanctions, many of these individuals, whose major assets are located abroad, also faced setbacks due to the decline in the S&P and the Nasdaq indexes. Factors such as the US Federal Reserve's rate hikes and the deflating big-tech bubble were also cited as contributing to the decline in fortunes.

Pavel Durov, the owner of the popular messaging app Telegram, experienced a significant decline in his fortune, making him the biggest loser among Russia's billionaires, as reported by Forbes. Durov, who was considered the third-richest Russian businessman in March 2022, saw his wealth shrink by $3.6 billion compared to 2021, leaving him with a fortune of $11.5 billion.