Oleg Deripaska

Abstract is: Oleg Vladimirovich Deripaska (Russian: Олег Владимирович Дерипаска; born 2 January 1968) is a Russian billionaire and an industrialist. Deripaska enriched himself on previously state-owned assets that were privatized in the aftermath of the collapse of the Soviet Union. He is the founder of Basic Element, one of Russia's largest industrial groups, and Volnoe Delo, Russia's largest charitable foundation. He was the president of En+ Group, a Russian energy company, and headed United Company Rusal, the second-largest aluminium company in the world, until he quit both roles in 2018. He has been characterized as a victor in the "aluminium wars" in Russia during the 1990s, which were frequently violent conflicts between businesspeople to obtain state-owned assets. In 2000, Deripaska founded Rusal, the result of a partnership between Sibirsky Aluminium and Roman Abramovich's Millhouse Capital. In 2007, Rusal merged with SUAL Group and Glencore International AG to form UC Rusal, with Deripaska as chairman. He was once Russia's richest man, but lost a substantial part of his fortune amid the 2007–08 financial crisis. As of June 2022, his wealth was estimated by Forbes at $3.2 billion, making him the 920th richest person in the world. Deripaska bought himself Cypriot citizenship (and therefore EU citizenship) in 2017. He was placed under U.S. sanctions in 2018 for reasons relating to the 2014 annexation of Crimea by Russia. Deripaska was one of seven oligarchs sanctioned by the British government over the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, including asset freezes and travel bans. He also has called for peace in Ukraine.