The richest people in the world: who they are and how they achieved success. The richest people in the world: who they are and how they achieved success. Who is the richest person in the world now?

It is human nature to track the lives of world-famous personalities; it is especially interesting to observe the statistics of annual incomes.

For this purpose, the famous Forbes magazine long ago developed a list of the richest people on the planet and separately in each country, for example, Russia.

This list is updated annually, each time elevating new billionaires to the top.

In 2018, it will be interesting to consider several selections at once: the richest personalities from the USA, the richest people in Russia, as well as the top richest people on the planet.

The richest people, as a rule, are not used to boasting about their income, but smart journalists and statisticians have long ago calculated everyone's earnings.

So, in the last few years, as in 2017, the leading place of rich people from America is occupied by the same person, which one we will consider below.

All people who have achieved success in their careers necessarily own a multi-million dollar company or corporation that is known throughout the world.

Consider the list from the USA according to Forbes magazine:

1. Bill Gates. The founder of Microsoft has long and successfully led the top leaders.

   Its revenue is $81 billion. Bill is 60 years old and lives in Medina, Washington.

   Gates also heads the largest charitable foundation aimed at combating human problems: malaria, polio, and childhood vaccinations.

2. Jeff Bezos. The man is the owner of the Amazon website, which successfully sells products online all over the world.

   At the same time, on the site you can find categories of goods that cannot be found in brick-and-mortar stores.

   The man is 52 years old, at this age he has already managed to accumulate a fortune of 67 billion dollars.

3. Warren Buffett takes third place.– a man who earned $65.5 billion over 86 years.

   He lives in Omaha and is considered the largest investor. Berkshire Hathaway shares have been rising every year and are up 10% since last year.

   Almost every year, Buffett gives away shares of the company, this year the gift amounted to $2.9 billion.

4. Thirty-two-year-old handsome Mark Zuckerberg ranks 4th among the richest people in the United States.

   The founder and owner of Facebook already earned $55.5 billion in 2018.

   Mark and his wife make loud statements about spending money on finding ways to get rid of deadly diseases, and are also going to spend money on developing the potential of humanity.

5. Larry Ellison. The man is 72 years old, his current income is $49.3 billion, the main profit comes from Oracle.

   The company is trying to compete with the famous Amazon, but so far without success, although Ellison's fortune has increased over the past year.

The top ten is completed by Michael Bloomberg with Bloomberg LP, Charles Koch with diversified capital, his brother David Koch, as well as Larry Page and Sergey Brin, the owners of Google.

Top richest people in Russia

In the vastness of our country, there are also people whose earnings are several times higher than the income of the country’s population.

Typically these are owners of large companies, as well as shareholders of manufacturing corporations.

Let's look at the top richest people in Russia:

• Vladimir Lisin- occupies a leading position, is the chairman of the directors of NLMK, he has assets in this holding: income amounted to $19,100 million.
• Alexey Mordashov- is the chairman of the directors of the Severstal company, income is 18,700 million dollars: Mordashov is included in the ranking of 200 richest businessmen in Russia.
• Leonid Mikhelson– his fortune is estimated at $18 million, the businessman is the chairman of the board of PJSC Novatek.
• Vagit Alekperov- ranks 4th on the list, income amounted to $16,400 million in 2018: the businessman is the president of the Lukoil corporation.
• In 5th place on the list is Gennady Timchenko, who is a member of the board of directors of Novatek and Sibur: the income of this individual is 16 million US dollars.
• Vladimir Potanin– a businessman is engaged in non-ferrous metallurgy, his income is $15,900.
• Andrey Melnichenko– involved in the coal industry, energy and fertilizers, income $15,500.
• Mikhail Fridman– the source of income is oil, financial industry, telecommunications, retail trade: income amounted to $15,100.
• Victor Vekselberg– is engaged in non-ferrous metallurgy, investments, earnings for 2018 amounted to $14,400.
• Alisher Usmanov– the first 10 places are closed by a businessman who earned $12,500 in 2018 from metallurgy, the Internet and telecommunications.

Important! The 50 leaders are closed by Vadim Moshkovich, who is engaged in agriculture. His income is $2 million.

In 100th place is Yuri Gushchin, who earned $1 million in 2018 - he works in consumer goods and investments.

According to statistics, a large number of millionaires are observed in Chelyabinsk, which is associated with industry.

The richest people on the planet

If you look closely at the top richest people in the world, you can find similarities with the ranking of the richest people in America.

The leader is Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon. Second place goes to Bill Gates.

Warren Buffett, the head of Berkshire Hathaway, is in 3rd position.

The 500 richest people on the planet include businessmen from Russia listed in the previous section. The ranking of the 1000 richest people includes representatives of Russia, the USA and other developed countries.

Useful video

The American magazine Forbes traditionally announced the list of the richest people in the world based on the results of the past year. The 32nd annual world ranking, published on March 6, 2018, included 2,208 people from 72 countries around the globe, each of whom owns a fortune of at least $1,000,000,000. At the same time, the total income of billionaires from all over planet Earth increased by 18% compared to last year and amounted to $9.1 trillion. We invite you to familiarize yourself with this year’s list and the types of activities to which billionaires owe their capital.

The top ten absolute world leaders in terms of wealth earned included businessmen, software developers, representatives of the fashion industry, publishing, media and the mobile communications market.

The top ten people on Forbes' 2018 list of the world's richest people are:

• Jeff Bezos ($112 billion) topped the 2018 Forbes Billionaires List for the first time and became the world's richest person. The rapid rise in price of shares of his brainchild Amazon by 59% allowed 53-year-old Bezos to add $39,200,000,000 to his net worth compared to last year.

Interesting! Jeff Bezos managed not only to top the list of the world's richest people in 2018, but also to become the first billionaire whose fortune is estimated at 12 figures.

• Bill Gates ($90 billion) ranks 2nd on the Forbes list. Despite the fact that Microsoft brought him fame and the bulk of his fortune, today Gates's stake in the company does not exceed 3%. Now he makes money mainly from a mechanical engineering company, an investment fund and a number of other sources.

• Warren Buffett ($84 billion) is in 3rd place in the 2018 top richest people. The 87-year-old billionaire's income throughout his life comes from the investment holding Berkshire Hathaway, which owns various shares of shares in more than 60 companies.

• Bernard Arnault ($72 billion) was able to get to 4th place in the Forbes top and increase his wealth by $30,500,000,000 (while in 2017 he was only in the second ten). The 69-year-old Frenchman is the sole owner of the LVMH Moët Hennessy holding, which represents luxury brands Louis Vuitton, Sephora, Christian Dior (since 2017), etc.

• Amancio Ortega ($70 billion) is the founder of the Inditex holding, which includes the famous brands Zara, Bershka, Massimo Dutti, etc., and is the 6th billionaire in the world. The 80-year-old Spaniard also buys real estate in prestigious locations in Europe and America and receives substantial dividends from its resale or rental.

• Carlos Slim Helu ($67.1 billion) is seventh on the Forbes world list of billionaires. The Mexican is the owner of the mobile operator America Movil, as well as a co-owner of the New York Times newspaper and a number of real estate and mining companies.

• Charles Koch ($60 billion) is on the eighth line of the Forbes 2018 top list. Together with his brother, he is the owner of the Koch Industries holding. The latter's history began in 1940, when their father founded an oil refinery.

• David Koch ($60 billion) is the second co-owner of Koch Industries, who, thanks to the decision to buy out the Times publishing house, managed to add $11,700,000,000 to his capital and take 9th place in the ranking of world billionaires.

• Larry Ellison ($58.5 billion), an American ranked 10th on the Forbes list, is the founder of the IT company Oracle, which has recently been developing cloud services. Ellison also actively invests in her favorite pastime, sailing, and spares no expense for charitable causes.

The richest people in Russia in 2018

Among the richest people in the world, the 2018 Forbes list included 102 people from Russia, whose total wealth was estimated at $410,800,000,000. Most of them earned their fortune in the oil and gas sector or other commodity markets. So, the ten richest representatives of the Forbes list from Russia:

• Vladimir Lisin ($19.1 billion) is the richest person in Russia in 2018 and is on the 57th line of the Forbes global ranking. Lisin holds the position of Chairman and is the main owner of shares in NLMK (steel sector) and Universal Cargo Logistics Holding.

On a note! Vladimir Lisin holds the position of vice president of the International Shooting Sports Organization. It was thanks to him that the largest shooting complex in Europe, “Fox Hole,” appeared in the Moscow region.

• Alexey Mordashov ($18.7 billion) is the second (as last time) place among the richest Russians and 60th place in the world top. The capital of the co-owner of Severstal, tour operator TUI and gold mining company Nord Gold N.V increased by $1,200,000,000.

• Leonid Mikhelson ($18 billion), the winner of last year’s Russian Forbes rating, dropped to 3rd place in 2018 (64th place in the Forbes top). The fortune of the co-owner of the chemical holding Sibur and the largest private gas production company Novatek decreased by $400,000,000.

• Vladimir Potanin ($15.9 billion) – ranks 6th and 83rd in the Forbes lists of Russia and the world, respectively. Possession of shares in the Norilsk Nickel company, the Petrovax Pharm concern and the most famous ski resort in Russia, Rosa Khutor, brought Potanin an additional $1,600,000,000.

• Andrey Melnichenko ($15.5 billion) - the main owner of Eurochem, the companies SGK (energy) and SUEK (coal mining) in 2018, ranks 7th in the Russian and 88th place in the international list of billionaires according to Forbes 2018 .

• Mikhail Fridman ($15.1 billion) – an increase in his own finances by $700,000,000 allowed the founder of Alfa Bank, co-owner of Alfa Group and LetterOne to be ranked 8th on the Forbes 2018 list.

• Viktor Vekselberg ($14.4 billion) – ranks 9th among the richest people in Russia (89th in the world). The lion's share of his income now comes from the Suzler company from Switzerland (which produces pumping equipment). In addition to her, Vekselberg also receives income from the activities of the Renova Group of Companies, of which he is the founder.

Interesting! Viktor Vekselberg’s private collection contains famous works of art, including 9 Faberge eggs; he paid the Forbes family about $100,000,000 for the acquisition.

• Alisher Usmanov ($12.5 billion) closes the top 10 richest people in Russia according to Forbes 2018 and ranks 118 in the world top. Having started a business with the production of polyethylene products during the Soviet era, today Usmanov is a co-owner of the Metalloinvest holding, Megafon, Mail.ru Group, Arsenal FC and a stake in Xiaomi.

Once upon a time, a woman’s destiny was the three Ks - “Kinder, Küche, Kirche” (children, kitchen, church, in the words of the last German Emperor Wilhelm II). Fortunately, times are changing and modern ladies can successfully compete with men in the business sphere and earn enough for their husbands to take care of the housework.

We present to you the top 10 richest women in Russia in 2017 according to Forbes.

10 Irina Abramovich

You can, of course, say “oh, this is Roman Abramovich’s ex-wife, that’s where the money comes from.” But the couple broke up ten years ago, and Irina is still one of the richest Russian women. She spends most of her time on an estate in the English county of Hampshire, where there is a stable with beautifully trained riding horses. Each of the purebred four-legged beauties costs about 400 thousand dollars.

Lady Abramovich is also an avid shopaholic and a regular at the best London boutiques. In addition to shopping, she often visits the Royal Opera House, enjoys collecting paintings by Russian masters and communicates with many celebrities, such as Hong Kong oligarch David Tang and Sir Elton John.

9 Marina Sedykh

The 57-year-old businesswoman has held her post as head of the Irkutsk Oil Company (INK) since 2000. Under her leadership, INK earned a number of awards and prizes, including the international Business Triumph award and the title of “Best Independent Oil Company in Eastern Europe” from the authoritative financial publication World Finance.

In addition to her main position, Sedykh is also a deputy of the Legislative Assembly of the region and is no stranger to charitable activities. She paid for the production of a bronze bust of the hero of Russia, senior lieutenant Andrei Sherstyannikov, who died in 2000 in a battle with militants in the Argun Gorge. In 2016, Sedykh was awarded the “Patron of the Year” diploma by the Ministry of Culture.

8 Natalia Lutsenko

Selling feed and animal feed additives is where Natalya and her husband Alexander began their journey into the world of big business. After a successful start, Sodrugestvo began to buy up enterprises operating in the food industry. Then a number of Ukrainian and Russian poultry farms and a Danish plant producing protein and vitamin supplements were added to the list of acquisitions.

Currently, Sodruzhestvo is the main Russian supplier of GMO and non-GMO soybeans and a producer of lecithin, rapeseed and soybean oils. In 2012, the Japanese company Mitsui & Co became one of the shareholders of Sodruzhestvo (ten percent of the shares were purchased for $2.2 billion). Sodrugestvo factories are located not only in Russia, but also in Denmark and Brazil.

7 Tatyana Kuznetsova

A new face in the ranking of the richest women in Russia in 2017. Kuznetsova owns a 0.2% stake in the Russian gas enterprise Novatek, which is one of the top ten world leaders in terms of proven natural gas reserves and gas production. Tatyana Kuznetsova is not only the second most important person on the board of Novatek, but also heads the legal department of this PJSC.

6 Evgenia Guryeva

The wife of billionaire Andrei Guryev owns a share of PhosAgro, the largest domestic and European supplier of phosphorus-containing fertilizers. Evgenia’s husband is the second person on the board of directors of PhosAgro, and the company is headed by the son of the Guryev couple. His name is Andrey, like his father's.

The daughter of Evgenia and Andrey, Yulia, together with her mother, participates in the work of a charitable foundation, which provides support to low-income citizens, family members of those killed in terrorist attacks and WWII veterans, helps the social rehabilitation of the unemployed, orphans, disabled people and other categories of the population, for some reasons. or for reasons of not being able to independently exercise their rights.

5 Tatyana Bakalchuk

In 2004, Tatyana (at that time an English tutor) had a child. This forced the young woman to look for new sources of income. With the support of her husband Vladislav, she initially offered clients clothes and shoes from the German Otto and Quelle catalogs. Moreover, the apartment of the Bakalchuk spouses served as a warehouse for goods. Things went so well that already in 2005, the Wildberries company appeared, which is currently one of the largest online stores in Russia. You can buy a lot of things there: from clothes and shoes to books, toys and jewelry.

Last year, Tatyana was the third most successful businesswoman on the Forbes list, but since then her income has fallen by $80 million.

4 Olga Belyavtseva

In the nineties, Belyavtseva, together with Nikolai Bortsov, director of the cannery of the Ministry of Fruit and Vegetables, created the Lebedyansky concern. It became one of the largest Russian juice producers. It was at this enterprise that such brands as “FrutoNyanya”, “Tonus”, “Ya”, “Fruit Garden” were made.

Over a ten-year period, from 1998 to 2008, Lebedyansky’s turnover increased from $18 million to $800 million, and its market share grew along with it, from 4% to 30%.

In 2008, PepsiCo and Pepsi Bottling Group became the majority shareholders of Lebedyansky. Thanks to this deal, Belyavtseva became $330 million richer.

The deal did not include the Progress enterprise (it was wholly owned by Lebedyansky) and its main shareholders remained the father and son of Bortsov and Belyavtsev. This company produces a popular line of products under the brands “FrutoNyanya”, “Malysha” and “Lipetsky Pump Room”.

In 2016, Belyavtseva entered into an agreement with Mondi Group to sell Bipak LLC, which she owned, which produces corrugated cardboard and packaging for food and agricultural products. The amount of this transaction amounted to 2.8 billion rubles.

Since 2016, Olga Belyavtseva’s position in the list of the richest women from Russia has not changed.

3 Natalia Fileva

Fileva's main business is the private Russian air carrier S7. The group of airlines owned by the Filev family includes Globus and Sibir, which is second after Aeroflot in terms of air traffic in Russia (as of 2016). Moreover, Natalia manages most of the shares of Siberia, thanks to which in 2006 she was able to get into the ranking of the most successful women in Russia according to Forbes and has not left it since then.

Together with her father and mother, daughter Tatyana also participates in the family endeavor. Under her patronage, an unusual marketing project was launched: the first music video in zero gravity. It was filmed by Chicago alternative rock band OK Go and S7 Airlines.

2 Elena Rybolovleva

In the 80s, Elena and Dmitry Rybolovlev, then not yet millionaires but aspiring entrepreneurs, created a clinic providing magnetic therapy services. They invested the money they earned in industrial enterprises. The head of the family became a co-owner of Uralkali and acquired a number of shares in various enterprises, including Silvinit, Azot and Solikamskbumprom.

In 2001, the Rybolovlev couple moved to Switzerland, but their marriage lasted only until 2008. The spouses did not enter into a marriage contract and divided their property for a very long time. Only in 2015 did they come to a settlement agreement, according to which Elena received $604 million and real estate in Switzerland.

The divorce made Rybolovleva one of the richest brides in Russia. As in 2016, she received an honorable second place in the selection of the most profitable Russian business women.

1 Elena Baturina

One of the richest women in the world and the permanent leader of the top 10 Russian millionaires for 12 years in a row. In addition to the Inteko corporation, Baturina owns shares in Gazprom and Sberbank. She also owns an international hotel chain.

According to Forbes magazine, Baturina is the only independent “self-made” businesswoman who has created her own business in the construction industry. She is the only billionaire from the entire number of the richest entrepreneurs in Russia.

Elena Baturina managed to turn even her passion for equestrian sports into a profitable business. She owns the Weedern stud farm, founded in the 18th century. It breeds Hanoverian, Holstein and Trakehner horses.

This bright and strong woman is living proof that even a girl from a working-class family (Baturina’s mother and father worked at the Frazer plant, and not in leadership positions) can achieve enormous success in life. And not thanks to her millionaire husband (Yuri Luzhkov met Elena before he was mayor of the capital), but only to his own mind and business acumen.

The richest man in the world earned more than $3,000 per minute in 2019. His fortune is estimated at $131 billion. And this, oddly enough, is not Bill Gates, who has been recognized several times as the wealthiest person in the world.

The richest people in the world, included in the TOP 10, own more than half of all the world's money. This is data that was published in the IMF report in 2017. Since then, the situation has not changed dramatically. However, new faces have entered the list of the world's richest people.

TOP richest people in the world

According to Forbes, the richest people in the world have long held their positions in the TOP 100 ranking. But the TOP 10 ranking is constantly changing, depending on global market trends.

Thus, the richest person in the world in 2019 is Jeff Bezos, who founded Amazon. Its closest competitor needs to work hard to overtake it. Considering that the popularity of the Amazon service is growing every year, experts predict that Bill Gates will lag even further behind.

Success stories: how to become the richest

It is interesting to know how rich people made their fortunes so that they know in which direction they need to move to repeat their feat. Studying another person's success story can often lead to the results you need.

The rapid growth of his income is due to the sharp rise in the price of his company's shares. In 2017, Amazon's value increased by 59%. The businessman is constantly improving the quality of his service, which makes it very popular in the world.

Jeff Bezos is the richest man on the planet

The entrepreneur spent his entire life creating networks for international sales. But he decided to create Amazon only at the end of 1994. He also has a company called Blue Origins, which is developing projects to develop space tourism.

Jeff Bezos is actively involved in charity work. Every year he spends millions of dollars to fight cancer. He also founded the Bezos Family Foundation, the funds of which go to investments in the scientific and educational fields.

Its fortune is based on successful competition with other software companies. Today, most people use Windows on their computers. The use of licensed software and the release of games and other programs by Microsoft increase the income of the organization and its founder.

Bill Gates is the founder of Microsoft.

He also has a corporation called Corbis, which specializes in the creation of licensed photographs and videos. Its main idea is that over time people will decorate their homes not with paintings, but with electronic versions of them. Today there is active cooperation with leading museums in the world.

bgC3 (Bill Gates Company 3) provides a research center. The entrepreneur invests a lot of money in it to develop software technologies and information security.

Bill Gates is also the founder of the largest charitable foundation named after himself and his wife. The foundation's mission is to improve the world's healthcare system and fight hunger.

It owns more than 60 companies. He invests in various companies, acquiring shares, which allows him to earn income in the long term. Entrepreneurs are most interested in ambitious startups. As Warren Buffett himself says, his intuition about where to invest helps him to be included in the ranking of the richest people in the world.

Warren Buffett is the most famous investor of our time.

Warren Buffett's income has increased significantly since Donald Trump took office. He introduced some tax breaks, which led to a reduction in the costs of this entrepreneur.

Buffett has authored many books related to income generation. He himself is very conservative, so he tries not to invest in areas that are incomprehensible to him. That is why he became one of the last who began to invest money in IT technologies and still ignores cryptocurrencies.

Bernard Arnault

His company has founded more than 70 famous global brands that are controlled by LVMH. His income directly depends on the level of sales. Therefore, his position in the ranking of the richest people in the world is unstable. Back in 2017, he was not included in the ranking of the 10 richest people in the world, but over the year his income increased so much that he was able to immediately take 4th place according to Forbes.

The businessman himself has been awarded several times for his contribution to art in various countries. This is one of the least famous personalities in the world. He tries not to give interviews. If journalists manage to meet him, he remains taciturn.

Mark Zuckerberg

One of the youngest billionaires in the world. The growth of his income is due to the growth of shares of the social network Facebook. Many entrepreneurs are fighting to get shares in his corporation. A distinctive feature of Mark Zuckerberg is that he is only engaged in the development of this company, without trying to found new brands.

It is worth noting that Mark Zuckerberg receives a salary of only $1. All other income is dividends from his company. Despite his wealth, he leads a modest lifestyle. Today he has a wife and child.

Amancio Ortega

His company, Zara Industries, has more than 200 stores in almost 50 countries. The Zara brand is well known and very popular. Expanding online sales opportunities can increase company revenue.

Today, Zara offers cooperation under a franchise agreement, which can significantly increase the number of branded stores in various countries around the world. Favorable terms of cooperation increase interest in the company, which allows Amancio Ortega to increase his income.

The businessman himself was able to fulfill his dream - to create his own unique business model, which allows him to create high-quality clothes at affordable prices. Many people today study this man's success story in business schools. At the moment, he has completely retired and is retired, enjoying life.

Carlos Slim

It owns the largest cellular operator in Mexico. He also has interests in the mining industry and foreign telecommunications companies. An entrepreneur is constantly looking for new ways to diversify his income. In this regard, a 17% stake in The New York Times was once purchased.

Carlos Slim invests in various areas. It has interests in mining, chemicals, construction and other areas of the economy. Moreover, he buys not only shares of Mexican companies.

The entrepreneur himself is a widower. He has 6 children, three of whom hold positions in his business empire. He did not inherit millions, but he always had a stable income and sought to increase his wealth. Throughout his life, Carlos Slim was distinguished by frugality and a modest lifestyle.

Charles and David Koch

They are co-owners of Koch Industries, which works to create wealth in various industries. They once bought shares from their brothers in order to take control of their father's organization after his death. Today this company employs more than 100 thousand people. The products they produce are successfully sold not only in the USA, but also in Latin America, Europe and Russia.

These brothers are quite intelligent and calm. Their main merit lies in the fact that they inspire each of their employees that their work is their property. Therefore, everyone is obliged to work in such a way as to preserve their capital and increase it.

It is worth noting that this approach and a generous inheritance helped the brothers build a successful business empire.

Larry Ellison

He is considered the second person after Bill Gates in the field of software production. Its software is actively used in financial, credit and other commercial structures. It helps to establish business processes. Today, the company is actively developing cloud technologies, which has allowed its share price to increase by 18%. He left the post of Chairman of the Board of Directors, becoming the technical director of the organization.

The businessman always demanded complete dedication from his employees, as a result of which his company became one of the most dynamically developing in the world. As head of the corporation, he pursued an aggressive policy. Customers were often deceived, and any methods were used to fight competitors. The decision to leave the post of head of Oracle is connected with another marriage.

The richest people on the planet for 2018.

Forbes magazine is a world-famous print publication specializing in the global economy. It was named after Bertie Charles Forbes, who founded it in 1917. Since 2004, a Russian version of the magazine, Forbes Russia, has been published in Russia. Probably the most anticipated news that Forbes announces every year is the ranking of billionaires around the world. What changes have occurred over the year? Who topped and generally entered the list of Russian billionaires? We will talk about this and much more in the article.

History of the Russian version of Forbes

Russia was the fifth country in the world to begin publishing a magazine on its territory. The first issue, as already mentioned, was published in 2004. JSC Axel Springer Russia took on the implementation of the project. Within 5 years, an electronic version of the Russian Forbes magazine was created.

The printed publication has seen many editors over the course of a decade. And less than a year ago, Axel Springer Russia CJSC sold publishing rights to ACMG, headed by businessman Alexander Fedotov. It must be said that this decision was forced due to changes in Russian legislation on the share of foreign managers of local media. In fact, this was a direct clash between the owners of Vedomosti and Forbes, because these publications touch upon serious political and economic topics and, moreover, have significant contributions from foreign owners. It is worth noting that Forbes magazine, from the date of its founding, adhered to its own views and was independent of other people’s opinions and influence.

Russia's first billionaires in Forbes

In 1997, the magazine for the first time included in its list of Russians who had good wealth at that time. These were the leaders:

• Lukoil company - Vagit Alekperov;
• ONEXIM Bank - Vladimir Potanin;
• YUKOS - Mikhail Khodorkovsky;
• Gazprom - Vyakhirev Rem;
• group "Most" - Gusinsky Vladimir;
• Berezovsky Boris (Deputy Secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation).

The list has since been updated. However, one of the managers of the enterprise is still among the richest people on the planet. This is Vladimir Potanin, who topped the list of Russian billionaires in 2015.

Forbes magazine rating results in 2016

On March 1 of this year, the newest ranking of billionaires in Russia and around the world was published. The list included 77 citizens of the Russian Federation. The size of each of them has remained virtually unchanged over the past year. But it is known for certain that 20 oligarchs have become even richer. Newcomers have also appeared, which we will talk about a little later.

The economic situation in the world has not been stable recently. This has certainly affected the fortunes of billionaires. The total amount of funds available to Russian oligarchs in 2016 decreased by almost 54 billion conventional units compared to last year. The financial situation of most wealthy individuals has changed, and therefore the list has been updated. Forbes information on the status of the world's richest people for 2016 is reflected in the table:

As you can see, mostly men of retirement age can boast of big money; there are, of course, young lucky ones. The largest number of billionaires, as in other years, are in the United States. The leader of the list during this period is Bill Gates, the world-famous creator of the Windows OS.

Where are ours?

As you can see, the oligarchs of Russia are still not rich enough to get into the top ten of Forbes. The country's richest man is only 60th on the overall list. His fortune is estimated at $14.4 billion. And this person, completely unexpected for many readers, is Leonid Mikhelson. “Why unexpected?” - you ask. Last year, the head of Novatek was not even among the top five billionaires according to the Russian version of Forbes magazine. In just a year, he was able to break through from 7th place to the leader.

The top ten people with enormous wealth by Russian standards also included:

In total, 77 Russians were included in the Forbes world list in 2016, which is 11 people less than last year.

The main “rises” of the capital of the year

This year the leader of the list of Russian billionaires has changed. It was Leonid Mikhelson, a “gas” and “oil” tycoon, a shareholder of the Novatek company. He was able to increase his fortune by 23%, which allowed him to make an unimaginable breakthrough: from 105th place in the world ranking to 60th! It is also worth noting that before this Mikhelson had never been included in the list of Russian billionaires.

But this successful businessman was surpassed in terms of capital growth in one year by Mikhail Gutseriev, the head of the board of directors of RussNeft. He was able to climb 577 steps higher and took 205th place in the world ranking. His fortune almost doubled. At the end of 2015, he was ranked 16th in the Forbes Russia rating. It would not be surprising if next year he becomes Russia's leader in net worth. With such rapid growth, we can expect great achievements from the billionaire.

From heaven to earth?

The ups were followed by downs. How many billionaires in Russia have lost their positions during an economically and politically difficult year? Despite the fact that Fridman and Usmanov retained their position in the ranking (2nd and 3rd place, respectively), their capital decreased slightly. M. Friedman lost almost 9% of his funds, and Usmanov - about 13%. Vladimir Potanin, an entrepreneur and politician who became the leader of the Forbes Russia ranking of the richest people in Russia in 2015, felt the changes more noticeably. Its losses amounted to about 22%, which in monetary terms equates to $3.3 billion. Due to the decrease in his capital, he lost ground in the 2016 list, moving to 4th place.

But Oleg Deripaska, the owner of the Basic Element holding, was most unlucky. The entrepreneur dropped 624 positions down in the Forbes world ranking of billionaires. More than four billion were irretrievably lost.

More about the leaders: Leonid Mikhelson

The sixty-year-old Russian entrepreneur increased his capital by $2.7 billion in 2015, which led him to leadership in the ranking of Russian billionaires. By the way, he is not far behind the 50 richest people in the world according to Forbes magazine, where he ranks 60th. The total amount of his fortune is equal to 14.4 billion dollars.

This is one of the main shareholders of OJSC Novatek and Sibur Holding, which specialize in the production of gas and petrochemical products. Part of the funds comes from a share in Promsvyazbank. Mikhelson is passionate about art, which he expresses by sponsoring exhibitions in Russia and the USA.

"Silver" oligarch Mikhail Fridman

Compared to 2015, Friedman maintained his position on the Forbes Russia list, although he lost some of his wealth ($1.3 billion). As of this year, he owns $13.3 billion. He is the head of the financial and industrial investment group Alfa Group.

Has been in stable condition since 2010. Owner of such brands as Pyaterochka, Beeline, Perekrestok. Mikhail Fridman, through Alfa-Bank, is engaged in charity work, helping children with severe cardiac diseases. Has dual citizenship (Russia, Israel).

Usmanov Alisher

Owner of a fortune estimated at $12.5 billion. Over the past year, he lost almost 2 billion, but retained his position on the Russian Forbes list. He has several business empires, which bring him good income. Among them: Metalloinvest, Megafon, Kommersant.

Invested in Facebook at the inception of the social network. Three years ago, Usmanov invested in Chinese assets: the online retailer Alibaba, the production of Xiaomi smartphones. In addition, the billionaire is a co-owner of the Arsenal football club (London).

Newly minted Russian oligarchs

Russian dollar billionaires join the Forbes list every year. In 2016, the magazine published four new names previously unknown to the public. Of course, in the overall ranking they are still significantly behind the leaders. But who knows, maybe next year one of them will become one of the 20 oligarchs of Russia.

Mikhail Shishkhanov took 1126th place. Quite a young entrepreneur, head of PJSC B&N Bank. At 43 years old, he already has a fortune estimated at $1.6 billion. Gutseriev Sait-Salam, one of the members of the directors of the RussNeft company, goes on an equal footing with him. Leonid Boguslavsky is a little behind his comrades. He ranks 1476th in the Forbes ranking and has a capital of $1.2 billion. Together with him, the public was introduced to Kirill Shamalov, very young by oligarch standards (33 years old), he has 1.2 billion dollars and shares 1476th place in the world ranking with Boguslavsky.

In addition to new faces, Forbes welcomed entrepreneurs temporarily absent from the 2015 list: Viktor Kharitonin (Pharmstandard), Dmitry Pumpyansky (Sinara), Boris Rotenberg (SMP Bank) and private investor Megdet Rakhimkulov. Each of them freely owns one billion dollars. Together, the “new” oligarchs took 1649th place in 2016.

Those who left the rating

The consequences of the economic crisis have affected everyone, and billionaires are no exception. Of course, few of them became impoverished to zero. But the losses were significant. For many entrepreneurs, this resulted in their removal from the list of the richest people in the world. In 2016, 19 Russians left the rating, including: Nikolay Tsvetkov (Uralsib), Mikhail Balakin (head of SU-155), Rustam Tariko (Russian Standard Bank). Their fortune is estimated at between 1.1 and 1.7 billion dollars. At the moment, they are back at the finish line and will now compete for the title of “more successful entrepreneur” with the “young” generation of Forbes.

Young billionaires of Russia

Business develops, despite any obstacles. The most dexterous, brainy and far-sighted quickly soar upward, flying over millions of their fortune. At some point, a new stage in their life and career begins: the first billion dollars. Of course, it is difficult to achieve such heights on your own without the help of an inheritance. The process of conquering the pinnacle of an oligarch's fame can take a long time.

According to Forbes standards, the average age of nominees is 45 years old. This is the period of a person’s maturity, when he already has significant life experience and a stable financial situation behind him. All those who have not yet turned forty are considered young. Are there many of these in the world? How many of them are Russians?

Forbes Russia celebrates 7 lucky people who, despite their young years, already have financial achievements:

1. Shamalov Kirill (33 years old) - takes a seat on the board of directors of Sibur. In 2016, he took 64th position on the Forbes Russia list of rich people. His fortune is estimated at $1.2 billion.
2. Vyacheslav Mirilashvili (32 years old) is almost a billionaire, in his hands funds amounting to $0.95 billion. He is the manager of the Vaizra fund. He ranks 85th in the ranking of Russian oligarchs.
3. Pavel Durov (31 years old) is the founder of the social network VKontakte and the Telegram program, well-known among young people. As of 2016, he has a fortune of $600 million and occupies 136th position in the Forbes Russia ranking.
4. Elena Rybolovleva (27 years old), the ex-wife of Dmitry Rybolovlev, received her fortune of $600 million thanks to a divorce settlement. Engaged in investments. In the Russian Forbes list it is in 142nd place.
5. Denis Bazhaev (20 years old) is a young co-owner of the Alliance Group, owner of $500 million and 155th place in the ranking of Russian oligarchs.
6. Ivan Tavrin (39 years old) – owner of $400 million, head of PJSC Megafon. He founded his own business on his own. At the end of 2015, it ranks 194th in the Forbes Russia ranking.
7. Vitaly Yusufov (36 years old) – engaged in investments, owner of $400 million. It is located at position 196 on the Russian Forbes list.

Young oligarchs have every chance to conquer the first positions of Forbes. Many of them achieved results on their own, without the help of relatives and other people's finances.

Russian billionaires are famous figures, founders of large industrial and financial enterprises. Each of them has their own story of the path to success. Over the past year, there have been many victories and failures that have brought changes to the Forbes list. But troubles, like victories, strengthen the fighting spirit. Already next year it will be seen how they defended their cause with success and dignity and once again became one of the richest people in Russia.