Viktor Vekselberg Net Worth

What is Viktor Vekselberg's Net Worth?

Viktor Vekselberg is a Russian-Israeli businessman and oligarch who has a net worth of $8 billion. Viktor Vekselberg is the co-founder and president of the conglomerate Renova Group, which has interests in energy, oil, and telecommunications, among other sectors. He and his company have been heavily sanctioned by the United States and other countries due to their ties with Russia. Viktor Vekselberg is one of the richest people in Russia.

Early Life and Education

Viktor Vekselberg was born on April 14, 1957 in Drohobych, Soviet Ukraine to a Russian mother and a Ukrainian Jewish father. His father fought for the Soviet Union during World War II, when members of his family were killed by the Nazis in Drohobych. For his higher education, Vekselberg attended the Moscow State University of Railway Engineering, from which he graduated in 1979.

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Business Activities in Russia

In 1988, following the Gorbachev administration's relaxation of restrictions on the private sector, Vekselberg founded the company Komvek. Two years after that, he co-founded Renova Group with Leonard Blavatnik and Vladimir Balaeskoul. Vekselberg and Blavatnik focused at first on interests in aluminum smelters, and in 1996 they co-founded Siberian-Urals Aluminium Company. In the early 2000s, SUAL launched several social and economic partnerships between aluminum smelters and local municipalities. Meanwhile, through Renova, Vekselberg established the AAR consortium, which merged its Russian oil assets with British Petroleum to create the joint venture TNK-BP.

In 2006, Renova divested from the oil and gas sector and expanded into manufacturing, renewable energy, IoT, and transport. In 2017, Vekselberg opened Platov International Airport in Rostov-on-Don, which became the first greenfield airport in Russia since the collapse of the Soviet Union. A second greenfield airport, Gagarin International Airport, was opened in Saratov in 2019. Platov International Airport was shut down following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Among his other Russian activities, Vekselberg served as chairman of the Skolkovo Foundation, a nonprofit designed to foster innovation in the Russian economy that was also allegedly being used to access classified American technology.

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International Business

As part of its expansion and diversification, Renova Group opened a branch in Zurich, Switzerland in 2004. In 2006, it acquired a 10.25% stake in the Austrian company Unaxis Holding AG, which was later renamed Oerlikon.

Philanthropy

Having lost family members during the Holocaust, Vekselberg has devoted much of his time to Jewish philanthropy. He serves as a Russian Jewish Congress Consul for Countering Antisemitism and has supported local Jewish communities throughout Russia and Ukraine. Vekselberg's efforts have aided in the construction and restoration of several synagogues and Jewish community centers. In 2021, he became the chairman of the board of trustees of the Jewish Museum and Tolerance Center in Moscow, of which he had donated to the construction. Vekselberg also made major donations to health efforts amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Fabergé Collection

In 2004, Vekselberg purchased nine Fabergé eggs from the Forbes family in New York City for a little over $100 million. The collection was later exhibited in the Kremlin and Dubrovnik. Vekselberg has since increased his Fabergé egg collection to 15, making him the single largest owner of the items in the world. In 2013, he opened the Fabergé Museum in Saint Petersburg, which boasts over 4,000 works of decorative applied and fine arts.

Sanctions and Property Seizures

Due to his ties with the Kremlin, Vekselberg was among the Russian oligarchs named in the 2017 Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act. In 2018, the United States Department of the Treasury imposed sanctions on him and his Renova Group for allegedly interfering with the 2016 US presidential election. Vekselberg and several other Russian nationals were also sanctioned for their connection to Russia's annexation of Crimea, as well as various other activities in Russia. As a result, Vekselberg had over $1 billion of his funds frozen in American and Swiss bank accounts in 2021. The following year, in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, sanctions against Vekselberg were strengthened by the US and many other countries. Assets were seized and he was banned from traveling. Among the biggest seizures was of Vekselberg's super yacht, Tango.

Personal Life

With his wife Marina, Vekselberg has a daughter and a son. He reportedly resides in Switzerland and has Russian, Israeli, and Cypriot citizenship.

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