I’ve got limited access to my computer at the moment so I can’t visit until tomorrow at the earliest. However, I couldn’t let an item in Monday’s Times pass without a little schadenfreude . Apparently the global credit crunch has hit Russia's oligarchs hard, tuning them from multibillionaires to simple billionaires.For example, Roman Abramovich is placed second in the oligarch list with $13.9 billion, This is more than $9 billion less than he was worth in 2007. The magazine reckoned that his net worth had slipped back to little more than the level he enjoyed in 2004 (poor diddums).
But Abramovich’s slide is nothing compared to Oleg Deripaska, who was rated Russia's richest man in 2006 and 2007. His fortune, at $4.9 billion, is not about an eighth of what it was last year. Deripaska is often described as the Kremlin's favourite oligarch and is regarded as particularly close to Vladimir Putin. Liquidity problems and plunging share prices forced him to surrender stakes in a Canadian car-parts company and a German construction business to banks that had provided loans to fund the purchases. He came close to losing a 25 per cent stake in Norilsk Nickel, the world's largest nickel miner, until the state-owned Vnesheconombank, which is chaired by Mr Putin, bailed him out by providing $4.5 billion to repay a loan made by a group of Western banks.
In 10th place in Russia’s super rich list is dear old Jabba the Uzbek (aka Alisher Usmanov - above) whose estimated wealth of $4.5bn is a mere third of what it was last year. At this rate he’ll be heading off down to the dole office come the summer... If the worst comes to the worst I’ll happily buy a Big Issue off him!
Russia’s Top 10 richest
$14.1bn Mikhail Prokhorov, down from $21.5bn (ouch)
$13.9bn Roman Abramovich, down from $23bn (Eek)
$7.7bn Vladimir Lisin, down from $22.2bn (Ooyah)
$7.6bn Vagit Alekperov, down from £13.5bn (Yaargh)
$7.5bn Suleiman Kerimov, down from $18bn (Kapow)
$6.1bn Mikhail Fridman, down from $22.2bn (Zounds)
$5bn Vladimir Potanin, down from $21.5bn (Thud)
$4.9bn Oleg Deripaska, down from $40bn (The sound of Chopin’s Funeral March)
$4.6bn Dmitri Ribolovyev, down from $11.7bn (The whistling sound of a bomb dropping)
$4.5bn Alisher Usmanov, down from $13.3bn (HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!)
8 comments:
This economic crisis, is easily the worst in my lifetime, and yours.
The Great Depression of 1929, wasn't worldwide as this. With globalization, a true world economy, we have a world wide crisis.
In the Cold War days, the economy of Russia, was susceptible to different pressures. Now it's part of the world economy.
It's naïv to believe that Russia have change since the time of the Tsars: The Upper Class has allways adopted the changing political conditions, but the tsar family.
I say no more
BUt they're stil billionaires!!! n born into such wealth?!! I only need a million for them...:)
It is looking worse and worse Ren. I personally hope it doesn't go totally down the drain as it did in the 30s
Some things never change Tor!
That's true. I would happily live on a billion Stan!
My heart bleedeth.
Will you spare a few million to help a poor oligarch Welshcakes?
Oh boy... my heart bleeds for them.
Such compassion Snoopy, I'm touched!
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