Moscow is new 'billionaire's capital'

Russian oligarchs are back with a bang, making Moscow officially the world’s billionaire capital. Profiting from the recent commodity boom, the number of the country’s billionaires — most of whom built their empires during Russia’s anarchic 1990s — grew two thirds to 101, from last year’s 62, according to Forbes.

This has turned Moscow into the new capital for billionaires, with 79 calling it home, more than any other city in the world.

Russia also accounts for a third of all Europe’s 300 billionaires. And among the world’s top 100 richest people, there are 15 Russians, more than from all the other so-called BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) countries combined and more than from Saudi Arabia.

Leading the Pack is the steel baron Vladimir Lisin, whose estimated personal wealth of 24 billion USD has increased by some 10 billion since last year, moving him up 18 notches to place 14th among the richest. 

Source: Merco Press