The War Took Away Part Of The Billionaire’s Business

Rinat Akhmetov is the richest man in Ukraine and also the owner of a large business focusing on many different areas. In addition to the fact that the businessman owns SCM Holding and DTEK, he is the owner of Shakhtar Football Club https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FC_Shakhtar_Donetsk. The club was founded in 1936, but moved to the possession of the billionaire in 1996, during the Ukraine’s independence. The businessman is still the owner of the club and is proud of its success: among the awards are multiple victories in the Ukrainian Premier League, and Super Cup, as well as reaching the semi-finals of the UEFA Europa League 2019–2020. The team’s home stadium was in Donetsk, which since 2014 has been under the occupation of Russia. Thus, the team had to move to Kharkiv, then to Lviv, and now to Kyiv. 

In addition to the fact that Rinat Akhmetov is interested in football, his main earnings come from the businesses producing coal, electricity, and steel. Most of his businesses are located in the Eastern Ukraine, which is now under the control of the Russian army and is under constant shelling. As a result of the war, the billionaire’s company DTEK lost 70% of its value https://www.epravda.com.ua/rus/tags/akhmetov/, which greatly affected the businessman's fortune — it decreased by three times. We would like to note that Akhmetov’s company produced 90% of coal in Ukraine and had a huge economic impact on the country’s economy. No doubt, these losses are too high, so the billionaire is suing Russia for destroying his property and he will demand compensation. This was an interesting step, as previously the richest man in Ukraine was alleged of having ties with Russia. Yet, after these actions and his statement that Putin is a war criminal, Akhmetov made it clear that this is a mistake. From the very first days of the war, he has been helping the Ukrainian people. His charity foundation, as well as all surviving businesses, keep helping Ukrainians by providing evacuation support, handing over food and water, and offering medical care. Moreover, the billionaire said that peace is possible only on the terms of Ukraine — the complete withdrawal of the Russian army from the entire sovereign territory of Ukraine, including the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, as well as the Crimea. With this statement, Rinat Akhmetov also stressed that he was completely on the side of his country.

In addition to his main business, the billionaire also had influence in the media, as he owned some channels, but after the release of the anti-oligarchic law he quitted his share in the business. This move also hit his wallet. Rinat Akhmetov has repeatedly said that he is not an oligarch, but an investor. By the way, his first programme run by his charity foundation was called Economic Development of Ukraine. The most influential businessman of Ukraine has really built a huge business here, and he is not going to stop developing it because he believes in the victory of Ukraine and will be in Ukraine, together with the Ukrainian people, until victory.