Putin's hidden empire: Is he the world's richest man?
Vladimir Putin officially declares a modest fortune, yet the actual value of his assets may reach one trillion dollars. Critics of the Kremlin, such as Sir Bill Browder, point to the luxurious lifestyle of the Russian president, which contrasts with official data, reports the newspaper "Fakt".
According to "Fakt", Vladimir Putin officially owns an apartment in St. Petersburg, several cars, and savings worth over half a million dollars. However, the true value of his wealth could be significantly higher. Sir Bill Browder, a well-known critic of the Kremlin, estimates that Putin's wealth may reach one trillion dollars.
The newspaper reports that Putin earned 67.6 million rubles (about 804 thousand dollars) in the period from 2017 to 2022.
"Putin's Palace"
The greatest controversy surrounds the so-called "Putin's Palace" on the Black Sea, which is estimated to be worth 1.4 billion dollars. This palace was reported by the Anti-Corruption Foundation founded by Alexei Navalny.
Vladimir Putin himself denied the information from Navalny's foundation.
The authors of the report suggest that the construction of the building, with an area of nearly 193,750 square feet, was financed by Russian state-owned and private companies associated with the Russian leader's friends. The material at the time featured Navalny himself, who called Putin "the richest man in the world."
This was also the opinion of the Dutch newspaper "De Telegraaf." "Yachts, palaces, planes, and shady private companies - Putin is most likely the richest person in the world," the newspaper wrote in September 2023. The largest newspaper in the Netherlands recalled, among other things, the Panama Papers documents from 2016, which indicated that the Russian leader has, among other things, 2 billion dollars hidden through an extensive network of companies.
The Russian president's wealth
According to a report by economists from the "Harvard Political Review," Putin developed a system in which his wealth is distributed among a group of his close associates.
The late opposition leader Boris Nemtsov (murdered in 2015) noted that the head of state owns 43 airplanes and helicopters.
One of the aircraft reportedly features a cabin worth 2.8 million dollars embellished by jewelers, as well as a luxury toilet valued at nearly 26,000 dollars. In addition, he reportedly owns around 700 cars and several luxury yachts, such as the "Graceful," a 269-foot vessel worth about 94.5 million dollars, or the attributed "Scheherazade" - one of the largest yachts in the world.
