Russian billionaires "worth" 577 billion dollars

(Patria) - The richest Russians increased their wealth by 72 billion dollars in 2023 and are collectively "worth" 577 billion dollars, Forbes reported yesterday.

Former president of the oil company Lukoil Vagit Alekperov is now the richest man in Russia, Hina reports.

In 2021, before the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Forbes estimated the total wealth of Russian billionaires at 606 billion dollars.

High commodity prices in the last two years and Russia's war-driven economy, which has stifled the impact of Western sanctions, have helped recovery and a return to that figure.

Many Russian billionaires became targets of Western sanctions as the West sought to punish President Vladimir Putin and his close associates for the war in Ukraine.

Their total wealth fell to 353 billion dollars in 2022.

Alekperov's wealth increased from 20.5 to 28.6 billion dollars in 2023, Forbes reported.

He took first place in Russia from Andrey Melnichenko, who is now seventh and made his fortune in fertilizers, and whose net worth fell from 25.2 to 21.1 billion dollars.

Leonid Mikhelson, head of the Russian natural gas producer Novatek, ranked second on Forbes' list. His wealth increased by 5.8 billion dollars to a total of 27.4 billion dollars.

Forbes reported that in 2024, there are a record 2,781 billionaires worldwide. The figure is 141 more people than last year. The top 20 on the list hold most of the wealth, and Alekperov is now 59th in the world.

They are richer than ever, collectively worth 14.2 trillion dollars, an increase of two trillion dollars compared to 2023, Forbes reported.

Putin has repeatedly boasted that Western sanctions have failed to destroy the Russian economy and pointed out that it grew faster last year, with a GDP growth of 3.6 percent, than any G7 country, which are largely responsible for the sanctions.

The Russian economy recovered sharply after a decline in 2022. However, growth relies heavily on state-funded production of weapons and ammunition for the war in Ukraine, masking problems that prevent an improvement in the living standards of the Russian people.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) expects Russia's GDP to grow by 2.6 percent this year, but predicts a poor outlook for the economy in the future due to emigration and the unavailability of technology.

Global singing star Taylor Swift has joined the list of world billionaires, according to a new rich list, the BBC reported yesterday.

The American pop star entered Forbes' list of world billionaires for the first time with 1.1 billion dollars, along with ChatGPT creator Sam Altman with one billion dollars.

The owners of the French luxury goods giant LVMH, Bernard Arnault and his family, are at the top of the list with an estimated 233 billion dollars.