Suleyman Kerimov

Suleyman Kerimov
Сулейман Керимов
Suleyman Kerimov
Kerimov in 2010
Russian Federation Senator
from Dagestan
Incumbent
Assumed office
20 February 2008
Member of the State Duma
In office
19 December 1999 – 24 December 2007
Personal details
Born
Suleyman Abusaidovich Kerimov

(1966-03-12) 12 March 1966 (age 58)
Derbent, Dagestan, USSR
NationalityRussian
Children3, including Said Kerimov
EducationDagestan State University
WebsiteSuleyman Kerimov Foundation

Suleyman Abusaidovich Kerimov (Russian: Сулейма́н Абусаи́дович Кери́мов; Lezgian: Керимрин Абусаидан хва Сулейман; born 12 March 1966) is a Russia-based billionaire, oligarch,[1][2][3][4][5] and politician of Lezgian origin.[6][7][8] Kerimov has close ties to Vladimir Putin's government in Russia,[9] as well as Ramzan Kadyrov, the Chechen leader.[10]

He entered politics in the 1990s. By 1999, he won control of Nafta Moskva, a former state-oil trader. In the 2000s, Kerimov obtained billions of dollars in loans from big Russian state-owned banks, such as Sberbank and VTB.[9] Through these loans, he became a major stakeholder in Gazprom and Uralkali, as well as Sberbank.[9] By 2008, his fortune had risen to $21 billion,[9] and by 2022, it had decreased to $11 billion.[11][12]

Since 2008, Kerimov has represented the Republic of Dagestan in the Federation Council of Russia.[13]

He bought the football club FC Anzhi Makhachkala in 2011, which subsequently made numerous high-profile signings. The club bought Samuel Eto'o, making him the highest-paid player in the world.[9] In 2013, Kerimov drastically and abruptly cut the team's funding, prompting a firesale of players.[14][15]

In April 2018, he was placed under sanctions by the United States Department of Treasury.[16] In the wake of 2022 Russian Invasion of Ukraine, Kerimov was sanctioned as a Russian oligarch close to President Putin, by the US, UK and EU on 15 March 2022.[17][18]

Kerimov's son Said Kerimov resigned from the board of Polyus Gold in April 2022 and the family sold its stake in the company worth $6.3 billion relinquishing the majority shareholder position of Polyus Gold.[19]

  1. ^ "Treasury Designates Russian Oligarchs, Officials, and Entities in Response to Worldwide Malign Activity". home.treasury.gov (Press release).
  2. ^ "Kerimov (The database "PUTIN'S LIST")". www.spisok-putina.org. Retrieved 30 November 2022.
  3. ^ "French police detain Russia's 'secret oligarch' in Nice | DW | 21 November 2017". Deutsche Welle.
  4. ^ "Oligarch Suleiman Kerimow wurde in Frankreich festgenommen". Die Welt. December 2017.
  5. ^ "Porträt Sulejman Kerimow: Oligarch mit Ferrari-Crash". www.wiwo.de. 11 June 2008. Retrieved 30 November 2022.
  6. ^ "Russia Seeks Baumgertner's Extradition". AG Web. Retrieved 12 November 2013.
  7. ^ "Solly Garkov Plays Pin the Tale on the Donkey". Business Insider. Retrieved 12 November 2013.
  8. ^ "Kerimov Foundation: Welcome". kerimovfoundation.org. Archived from the original on 27 November 2018. Retrieved 6 February 2018.
  9. ^ a b c d e Cite error: The named reference Catherine Belton was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ Fuller, Liz (13 August 2016). "Struggle Under Way For Control Of Strategic Russian Port". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. Retrieved 15 March 2022.
  11. ^ "Suleiman Kerimov & family". Forbes. 9 December 2021. Archived from the original on 9 December 2021. Retrieved 30 November 2022.
  12. ^ "Bloomberg Billionaires Index". Bloomberg.com.
  13. ^ "Suleyman Kerimov". Suleyman Kerimov Foundation. Retrieved 12 November 2013.
  14. ^ Appell, James (7 August 2013). "Anzhi Makhachkala: Why are big-spending Russians cutting back?". BBC Sport. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
  15. ^ Waele, Jean-Michel De; Gibril, Suzan; Gloriozova, Ekaterina; Spaaij, Ramón (2018). The Palgrave International Handbook of Football and Politics. Springer. pp. 273–274. ISBN 978-3-319-78777-0.
  16. ^ Cite error: The named reference :2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  17. ^ Dean, Grace. "Fiji issued a restraining order that stops a sanctioned Russian oligarch's $325 million superyacht from leaving the country". Business Insider. Retrieved 29 April 2022.
  18. ^ "CONSOLIDATED LIST OF FINANCIAL SANCTIONS TARGETS IN THE UK" (PDF). Retrieved 16 April 2023.
  19. ^ "Sanctioned Russian's Family Sells $6 Billion Stake in Gold Miner". Bloomberg.com. 6 April 2022. Retrieved 29 April 2022.