Akhmetov’s son buys Swiss villa as oligarch sucks Ukraine’s enterprises dry
In December 2020, a new resident appeared in Vésenaz, a respectable suburb in Geneva. He paid an astronomical price of 60 million francs, or Hr 2 billion, to become part of the community and settle on the shores of Lake Geneva. This young man isn’t a successful businessman. Rather, he is an heir to an oligarchic empire created by his father, the richest man in Ukraine. The man who bought the house in Geneva is Damir Akhmetov, a 32-year-old son of Rinat Akhmetov, the biggest oligarch of the poorest country in Europe, Ukraine.
Damir is Akhmetov’s eldest son. He left Ukraine at the age of 10, studied in Switzerland and the UK, and is a member of the supervisory boards of his father’s energy and metallurgy companies, DTEK and Metinvest. His story has nothing to do with the success of a self-made man, he never ran a business independently, and was involved only in the management of his father’s companies. It is a depressing reminder of how Ukraine has become a resource base for a select few while leaving 40 million people impoverished. After all, outside of Ukraine, Akhmetov Sr. has no significant business, and the fusion of politics and oligarchic influence has allowed him to amass billions. Forbes Akhmetov’s net worth to be $7.6 billion. (H/T-Vanessa Beeley)