Under the leadership of Russian President Vladimir Putin, the country’s richest entrepreneurs, the billionaires, have almost entirely lost their political influence. At the same time, with the start of the war in Ukraine, the number of billionaires in Russia reached a record high, and most of them obeyed Putin’s policies.
On 24 February 2022, the day of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Putin gathered the wealthiest entrepreneurs in the Kremlin and said they must continue working together under the new conditions. Most of the entrepreneurs were forced to remain silent after the meeting, and many lost part of their wealth or left the country.
In the context of war and Western sanctions, Kremlin-loyal entrepreneurs benefited from new opportunities. In 2023 and 2024, spending on the war helped Russia’s economy grow, benefiting not only those with military contracts but also other billionaires. In this way, loyal entrepreneurs were able to quickly increase their wealth.
However, Putin’s strict policy continued with punishment for those who did not obey. The case of Mikhail Khodorkovsky shows that entrepreneurs involved in democratic initiatives were imprisoned and deprived of their wealth. Under current conditions, almost all mega-rich people do not oppose the war and are forced to stay silent.
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