Russian billionaire wealth rises 11% to $696.5bn

Russian billionaire wealth rose 11% over the past year to $696.5 billion , according to a Forbes Russia report published on April 23. The report said the increase came despite the ongoing conflict in Ukraine and wide-ranging Western sanctions aimed at the Russian economy.

The report attributed the overall rise mainly to disrupted trade flows that pushed up commodity prices. It said those price moves benefited individuals connected to Russia’s natural resource sector, where revenues and asset values can be closely tied to global pricing for energy, metals, and other raw materials.

In the ranking cited in the report, Alexei Mordashov, general director of investment firm Severgroup, was listed as Russia’s wealthiest billionaire. His fortune was estimated at $37 billion, up $8.4 billion from the previous year, the report said.

Vladimir Potanin, head of Interros and metals producer Nornickel, was placed second with $29.7 billion. Vagit Alekperov, former chief of Lukoil, ranked third with $29.5 billion, while Leonid Mikhelson, CEO of Novatek, and his family were fourth with $28.3 billion, according to the same report.

The figures highlight a divergence between the performance of commodity-linked fortunes and the broader pressures described in the report, including sanctions and the continuing war in Ukraine. The report’s explanation centered on how shifts in trade patterns can lift prices for key exports, which in turn can support wealth tied to resource-heavy businesses.

Even with the annual increase, the report said the combined wealth of Russian billionaires remains far below the fortunes of the richest U.S. technology figures. As a comparison point, it cited the global Forbes rich list, where Elon Musk was listed first with an estimated fortune of $839 billion, and Google’s Larry Page was listed second globally with $257 billion.

For global markets, the report’s data underscores how commodity pricing and trade-route disruptions can reshape wealth outcomes across countries and sectors. At the same time, the report did not detail how much of the change reflected asset revaluations versus other factors, leaving uncertainty about the precise drivers behind the year-on-year increase beyond the broad link it drew to commodity prices and trade disruptions.