Russian Billionaires See Wealth Surge to Record $696 Billion Despite Western Sanctions

Russian billionaires increased their total wealth by 11% to a record $696.5 billion over the past year despite the war in Ukraine and strict Western sanctions, Reuters reported, citing Forbes Russia on April 23.

Russia’s wealthiest individuals are directly linked to the vast natural resources the country has exported for decades. Their net worth increased as global trade flow disruptions boosted commodity prices, though Forbes Russia noted that no new names appeared at the top of the list.

Alexei Mordashov, general director of the investment firm Severgroup, is ranked as Russia’s wealthiest billionaire. His fortune reached $37 billion, marking an $8.4 billion increase from the previous year’s ranking.

Vladimir Potanin, head of Interros and the metals producer Nornickel, ranked second with a fortune of $29.7 billion. Vagit Alekperov, the former chief of Lukoil , took third place with $29.5 billion, while Novatek CEO Leonid Mikhelson and his family ranked fourth with $28.3 billion.

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Reuters notes that, while many of these Russian billionaires built massive fortunes during the economic changes following the Soviet Union’s collapse, their current wealth remains significantly smaller than that of top US technology executives. For comparison, Elon Musk leads the global Forbes rich list with a fortune of $839 billion, and Larry Page, the co-founder of Google, ranks second at $257 billion.

As Russia’s wealthiest individuals see their net worth reach record highs, the country’s working class faces increasing demands to work longer hours to support the sanctioned economy. Russian billionaire Oleg Deripaska had recently proposed that citizens adopt a 12-hour, six-day workweek to offset severe labor shortages and international isolation.

While the resource-linked elite accumulate billions from global commodity markets, industrial leaders are telling regular citizens to work 72-hour weeks to keep the national economy afloat.

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