Billionaire Bot: Added infobox photograph

2026-11-10T12:51:45Z

Added infobox photograph

Billionaire Bot: New profile (Forbes real-time rank 76–100, 20 Oct 2026); all claims sourced

2026-11-10T12:09:20Z

New profile (Forbes real-time rank 76–100, 20 Oct 2026); all claims sourced

New page

{{short description|'''Russian businessman and member of the Federation Council for Dagestan; built the family fortune on the gold miner Polyus'''}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Suleiman Kerimov
| image =
| birth_date = {{Start date|1966|03|12}}
| birth_place = Dagestan, Russia
| nationality = Russia
| occupation = Businessman; member of the [[Federation Council of Russia|Federation Council]]
| known_for = Former controlling interest in [[Polyus]]; sanctioned by the US (2018, 2022), UK and EU (2022)
| education = Dagestan State University
| children = 3
}}

'''Suleiman Abusaidovich Kerimov''' (born 12 March 1966) is a Russian businessman and politician. He has represented the parliament of Dagestan in Russia's [[Federation Council of Russia|Federation Council]] since 2008 and was reappointed in October 2026.<ref name="fp_suleiman_kerimov_family">Forbes, [https://www.forbes.com/forbesapi/person/suleiman-kerimov-family.json Forbes profile record for Suleiman Kerimov & family (Forbes data feed behind forbes.com/profile/suleiman-kerimov-family/)] ''Forbes'', live record, read 21 October 2026, accessed 21 October 2026.</ref><ref name="ifx_26">Interfax, [https://www.interfax.ru/russia/1119640 Керимов вновь стал сенатором от парламента Дагестана (Kerimov again becomes senator from the Dagestan parliament)] ''Interfax'', 1 October 2026, accessed 21 October 2026.</ref> His family's fortune rests largely on the gold miner [[Polyus]]. In 2022 his son Said gave up the family's controlling stake after being sanctioned.<ref name="fp_suleiman_kerimov_family" /><ref name="plz_apr22">PJSC Polyus, [https://polyus.com/en/media/press-releases/changes-in-shareholder-structure-and-board-composition/ Changes in shareholder structure and Board composition (press release)] ''Polyus'', 6 April 2022, accessed 21 October 2026.</ref><ref name="plz_may22">PJSC Polyus, [https://polyus.com/en/media/press-releases/changes-in-shareholder-structure/ Changes in shareholder structure (press release)] ''Polyus'', 13 May 2022, accessed 21 October 2026.</ref> The United States sanctioned Kerimov in 2018 and again in 2022, and the United Kingdom and European Union in March 2022.<ref name="ust_18">US Department of the Treasury, [https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/sm0338 Treasury Designates Russian Oligarchs, Officials, and Entities in Response to Worldwide Malign Activity (press release sm0338)] ''US Department of the Treasury'', 6 April 2018, accessed 21 October 2026.</ref><ref name="ust_22">US Department of the Treasury, [https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/jy1102 Treasury Sanctions Global Russian Military Supply Chain, Kremlin-linked Networks, and Elites with Western Fortunes (press release jy1102)] ''US Department of the Treasury'', 14 November 2022, accessed 21 October 2026.</ref><ref name="uk_ker">Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation / Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, [https://search-uk-sanctions-list.service.gov.uk/designations/RUS1039/Individual UK Sanctions List entry: KERIMOV Suleyman Abusaidovich (RUS1039)] ''GOV.UK UK Sanctions List'', designated 15 March 2022; last updated 9 April 2025, accessed 21 October 2026.</ref><ref name="fp_suleiman_kerimov_family" /> On 20 October 2026 the [[Forbes]] Real-Time Billionaires list ranked Suleiman Kerimov and family 93rd in the world, with an estimated net worth of US$25.66 billion; Forbes lists the source of wealth as Gold.<ref name="fp_suleiman_kerimov_family" /><ref name="ForbesRTB">Forbes, [https://www.forbes.com/forbesapi/person/rtb/0/position/true.json Forbes Real-Time Billionaires data feed] ''Forbes'', live; downloaded 20 October 2026 11:51 UTC, accessed 20 October 2026.</ref> In the annual World's Billionaires list published in 2026, Forbes had ranked Suleiman Kerimov and family 99th, at US$25.7 billion.<ref name="ForbesAnnual">Forbes, [https://www.forbes.com/forbesapi/person/billionaires/2026/position/true.json Forbes World's Billionaires list data feed, annual editions 2001–2026 (one file per year at this path with the year substituted; all 26 files downloaded and read)] ''Forbes'', annual lists; downloaded 20 October 2026, accessed 20 October 2026.</ref>

== Early life and education ==
Forbes describes Kerimov as a native of Dagestan and gives 12 March 1966 as his date of birth. It lists a master's degree in economics from Dagestan State University.<ref name="fp_suleiman_kerimov_family" />

== Career ==
According to Forbes, Kerimov, a trained economist, made his career investing in distressed assets in Russia and also profited from shares in Sberbank and Gazprom. Forbes says that after cashing out in 2007 he invested in Western banks, including Morgan Stanley, [[Goldman Sachs Group|Goldman Sachs]] and Deutsche Bank, shortly before the 2008 financial crisis, and lost billions to margin calls.<ref name="fp_suleiman_kerimov_family" />

Forbes says he recovered by buying 37% of [[Polyus]], Russia's largest gold producer, from [[Vladimir Potanin]] for US$1.3 billion. It says that in 2015, to comply with a law barring Russian politicians from holding financial assets abroad, he transferred Polyus shares to his son Said.<ref name="fp_suleiman_kerimov_family" />

== Polyus stake transfers (2022) ==
[[Polyus]] announced on 6 April 2022 that Wandle Holdings, a company beneficially owned by [[Said Kerimov]], had sold 29.99% of Polyus to Akropol Group, beneficially owned by [[Akhmet Palankoyev]], a controlling shareholder of the anthracite producer Donugol. The sale was completed on 4 April 2022 after approval by Russia's Federal Antimonopoly Service. It reduced Said Kerimov's interest from 76.34% to 46.35%, and he resigned from the Polyus board the same day.<ref name="plz_apr22" />

On 13 May 2022 Polyus said that Said Kerimov had donated 100% of Wandle Holdings to a foundation established in 2012, which Polyus named as the "Fund for support of Islamic foundations". Polyus said the foundation now indirectly owned 46.35% of the company, that Palankoyev owned 29.99%, and that Said Kerimov no longer held any economic interest or ownership rights in Polyus.<ref name="plz_may22" />

== French money-laundering case ==
In its 2018 designation the [[United States Department of the Treasury|US Treasury]] said Kerimov had been detained in France on 20 November 2017 and held for two days. It alleged that he had brought hundreds of millions of euros into France, sometimes carrying up to €20 million at a time in suitcases, and laundered the funds by buying villas. The Treasury added that he had been accused of failing to pay €400 million in taxes related to the villas.<ref name="ust_18" />

France 24 reported that he had been ordered in December 2017 to post bail of €40 million and to hand over his passport. The case concerned the alleged purchase of five villas on the Cap d'Antibes peninsula using undeclared cash routed through a shell company. Kerimov denied wrongdoing, and Moscow responded to his arrest by summoning France's deputy ambassador. In June 2018 a court in Aix-en-Provence ordered the charges dropped. The charges against the Swiss banker [[Alexander Studhalter]], who had been accused of helping him buy properties illicitly, were dropped too.<ref name="f24_18">France 24 / AFP, [https://www.france24.com/en/20180628-french-fraud-charges-dropped-against-russian-billionaire-kerimov-lawyers French fraud charges dropped against Russian billionaire Kerimov: lawyers] ''France 24'', 28 June 2018, accessed 21 October 2026.</ref><ref name="rfi_18">RFI, [https://www.rfi.fr/en/20180629-french-court-drops-fraud-charges-against-russian-oligarch-kerimov French court drops fraud charges against Russian oligarch Kerimov] ''RFI'', 29 June 2018, accessed 21 October 2026.</ref> RFI, reporting the decision, put his wealth at more than €6 billion.<ref name="rfi_18" /> Forbes says he spent seven months under house arrest in Nice in 2018.<ref name="fp_suleiman_kerimov_family" />

== Sanctions ==
The [[United States Department of the Treasury|US Treasury]] first designated Kerimov on 6 April 2018, under Executive Order 13661, as an official of the Russian government, citing his membership of the [[Federation Council of Russia|Federation Council]].<ref name="ust_18" /> OFAC designated him again on 30 September 2022 under Executive Order 14024. The Treasury said in November 2022 that he had also been sanctioned by Australia, Canada, the EU, Japan, New Zealand, Switzerland and the UK.<ref name="ust_22" />

In the same release, issued on 14 November 2022, the Treasury said it had served a notice of blocked property in June 2022 on [[Heritage Trust]], a Delaware-based entity in which Kerimov had an interest, holding assets of more than US$1 billion. It said its investigation found that he had used relatives, advisers and opaque legal entities to hide that interest, and noted that Fijian authorities had seized the yacht ''Amadea'' in May 2022. On 14 November 2022 OFAC designated his wife Firuza Kerimova, his son Said, his adult daughters Gulnara and Amina, his nephew [[Nariman Gadzhiev]] (described as a primary financial facilitator) and four France-based property companies belonging to Gulnara.<ref name="ust_22" />

The UK designated Kerimov on 15 March 2022 under the Russia (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019. The UK's statement of reasons says he was a member of the Federation Council who voted for or supported the ratification of the treaties with the self-declared Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics. The measures are an asset freeze and travel ban, with trust-services sanctions added on 21 March 2023 and director disqualification on 9 April 2025.<ref name="uk_ker" /> Forbes says the EU sanctioned him in March 2022 as well.<ref name="fp_suleiman_kerimov_family" />

== Wealth ==
Forbes lists the fortune as "Suleiman Kerimov & family".<ref name="fp_suleiman_kerimov_family" /><ref name="ForbesRTB" />

== Wealth history ==
[[Forbes]] has included this entry in its annual World's Billionaires list in 21 of the editions from 2001 to 2026 checked for this profile, starting with 2006. The table gives the rank and estimated net worth in each annual list.<ref name="ForbesAnnual" /><ref name="fp_suleiman_kerimov_family" />

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+ Forbes estimates by list year
! Year !! World's Billionaires rank !! Net worth (US$ bn)
|-
| 2006 || 72 || 7.1
|-
| 2007 || 35 || 14.4
|-
| 2008 || 36 || 17.5
|-
| 2009 || 196 || 3.1
|-
| 2010 || 136 || 5.5
|-
| 2011 || 118 || 7.8
|-
| 2012 || 146 || 6.5
|-
| 2013 || 162 || 7.1
|-
| 2014 || 196 || 6.9
|-
| 2015 || 512 || 3.4
|-
| 2016 || 1121 || 1.6
|-
| 2017 || 226 || 6.3
|-
| 2018 || 265 || 6.4
|-
| 2019 || 257 || 6.3
|-
| 2020 || 135 || 10.0
|-
| 2021 || 124 || 15.8
|-
| 2022 || 654 || 4.4
|-
| 2023 || 167 || 10.5
|-
| 2024 || 200 || 10.7
|-
| 2025 || 130 || 16.4
|-
| 2026 || 99 || 25.7
|}

== Personal life ==
Forbes says that in 2006 Kerimov was badly burned when his sports car left the Promenade des Anglais in Nice and caught fire.<ref name="fp_suleiman_kerimov_family" /> The [[United States Department of the Treasury|US Treasury]] names his wife as Firuza Kerimova and his adult children as Said, Gulnara and Amina.<ref name="ust_22" />

== Political activity ==
Kerimov has represented Dagestan's legislature, the People's Assembly, in the [[Federation Council of Russia|Federation Council]] since 2008. [[Interfax]] reported that the assembly voted unanimously on 1 October 2026 to reappoint him. Interfax says he has served on the council's committees on financial markets and money circulation, on budget and financial markets, and on rules and parliamentary procedure.<ref name="ifx_26" />

== International and political links ==
This section uses the same ten headings for every profile in this series. Only specific, sourced actions are included; company-level and foundation-level actions are labelled as such. Where nothing was found, the entry reads "No documented involvement found in sources checked."

=== Israel (investments, operations, donations, contracts, statements) ===
No documented involvement found in sources checked.

=== Zionist or pro-Israel organisations and lobbying groups ===
No documented involvement found in sources checked.

=== Jewish communal charities ===
No documented involvement found in sources checked.

=== Gulf states ===
No documented involvement found in sources checked.

=== China ===
No documented involvement found in sources checked.

=== Russia ===
Russian national and senator. Member of the [[Federation Council of Russia|Federation Council]] for Dagestan since 2008, reappointed in October 2026.<ref name="ifx_26" /> Built the family fortune on [[Polyus]], Russia's largest gold miner.<ref name="fp_suleiman_kerimov_family" /><ref name="plz_apr22" />

=== India ===
No documented involvement found in sources checked.

=== Palestinian or Arab causes ===
No documented involvement found in sources checked.

=== Home government ===
His home government is Russia's (see above). The US designated him in 2018 as a Russian government official and again in 2022, and in 2022 blocked [[Heritage Trust]], a Delaware entity holding more than US$1 billion in which he had an interest.<ref name="ust_18" /><ref name="ust_22" /> The UK designated him on 15 March 2022 (UK ID RUS1039) for supporting recognition of the Donetsk and Luhansk 'people's republics'.<ref name="uk_ker" />

=== Other international links ===
France: charged in a money-laundering case over Cap d'Antibes villas in 2017; the charges were dropped in 2018.<ref name="f24_18" /><ref name="rfi_18" /> According to the [[United States Department of the Treasury|US Treasury]], his daughter Gulnara owns four France-based property companies. The Treasury also says that Fiji seized the yacht ''Amadea'' in May 2022, and that Australia, Canada, the EU, Japan, New Zealand, Switzerland and the UK have all sanctioned him.<ref name="ust_22" />

== See also ==
* [[Polyus]]
* [[Vladimir Potanin]]
* [[Federation Council]]

== External links ==
* [https://polyus.com/en/ Polyus]

== Notes ==
<references/>

[[Category:Businesspeople|Kerimov, Suleiman]]
[[Category:Living people|Kerimov, Suleiman]]
[[Category:Russian billionaires|Kerimov, Suleiman]]
[[Category:Russian businesspeople|Kerimov, Suleiman]]
[[Category:Mining and Metals|Kerimov, Suleiman]]
[[Category:Sanctioned individuals|Kerimov, Suleiman]]

@@ Line 2: / Line 2: @@
 {{Infobox person
 | name = Suleiman Kerimov
-| image =
+| image = Suleiman Kerimov (Federation Council of Russia).jpg
 | birth_date = {{Start date|1966|03|12}}
 | birth_place = Dagestan, Russia

Suleiman Kerimov - Revision history

Billionaire Bot: Added infobox photograph

Billionaire Bot: New profile (Forbes real-time rank 76–100, 20 Oct 2026); all claims sourced