The Most Famous
BUSINESSPEOPLE from Ukraine
This page contains a list of the greatest Ukrainian Businesspeople. The pantheon dataset contains 847 Businesspeople, 4 of which were born in Ukraine. This makes Ukraine the birth place of the 25th most number of Businesspeople behind Czechia, and Netherlands.
Top 6
The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the most legendary Ukrainian Businesspeople of all time. This list of famous Ukrainian Businesspeople is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity.
1. Rinat Akhmetov (b. 1966)
With an HPI of 56.50, Rinat Akhmetov is the most famous Ukrainian Businessperson. His biography has been translated into 37 different languages on wikipedia.
Rinat Leonidovych Akhmetov (born 21 September 1966) is a Ukrainian billionaire and businessman. He is the founder and president of System Capital Management (SCM), and is the wealthiest man in Ukraine. As of June 2024, he was listed as the 785th richest person in the world with an estimated net worth of US$4 billion. Since 2014, his Foundation has provided 13 million food kits to the residents of Ukraine, and aid has reached more than 18 million people. Akhmetov is the owner and president of the Ukrainian football club Shakhtar Donetsk. From 2006 to 2007 and 2007–2012, Akhmetov was a member of the Ukrainian Verkhovna Rada (parliament) for the Party of Regions.
2. Viktor Vekselberg (b. 1957)
With an HPI of 52.77, Viktor Vekselberg is the 2nd most famous Ukrainian Businessperson. His biography has been translated into 30 different languages.
Viktor Felixovich Vekselberg (born April 14, 1957) is a Russian businessman. He is the founder and chairman of Renova Group, a Russian conglomerate. According to Forbes, as of November 2021, his fortune is estimated at $9.3 billion, making him the 262nd richest person in the world. Born in Ukraine, he has Russian, Israeli and Cypriot citizenship.
3. Mikhail Fridman (b. 1964)
With an HPI of 52.01, Mikhail Fridman is the 3rd most famous Ukrainian Businessperson. His biography has been translated into 28 different languages.
Mikhail Maratovich Fridman (also transliterated Mikhail Friedman; Russian: Михаил Маратович Фридман; Hebrew: מיכאיל פרידמן; born 21 April 1964) is a Ukrainian-born, Russian–Israeli tycoon. He is one of the co-founders of Alfa-Group, a multinational Russian conglomerate. According to Forbes, he was the second-richest Russian as of 2013 ($16.5 billion), moving down to ninth-richest Russian in 2023 ($12.6 billion). In May 2017, he was also ranked as Russia's most important businessman by bne IntelliNews. In February 2024, Fridman had a net worth of $13.1 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. In 1991, he co-founded Alfa-Bank, one of the largest private banks in Russia. After serving as CEO of TNK-BP, the 50/50 TNK-BP joint venture, for nine years, in 2013 he sold his stake in the company and co-founded the international investment company LetterOne (L1). Until 2022 Fridman was chairman of the supervisory board of Alfa Group Consortium, and also served on the boards of Alfa-Bank and ABH Holdings. Prior to 2022, he was on the supervisory board of directors for VEON (formerly Vimpelcom) and X5 Retail Group. He is a member of the supervisory board of DEA Deutsche Erdoel AG, which is owned by LetterOne. Fridman has been a member of numerous public-facing bodies, including the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, the Public Chamber of Russia, and the Council on Foreign Relations. In 2022, the EU imposed sanctions on Fridman in response to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. Fridman claimed the EU's allegations were false and defamatory. He subsequently decided to step down from the boards of LetterOne and Alfa Group, so that they could avoid sanctions. As reported by several media, Fridman has already filed lawsuits challenging sanctions on at least two occasions, like in July 2022 and in December 2022. In December 2022, a man reported by Russian state media to be Fridman was arrested in London by the UK's National Crime Agency, on charges of money laundering, conspiracy to defraud the Home Office and conspiracy to commit perjury. The UK National Crime Agency did not name the man, stating only that it had detained a 58-year-old "wealthy Russian businessman" at a "multi-million-pound residence". He was later released on bail. Subsequently, the agency scaled back its probe. In September 2023 the National Crime Agency closed the investigation. In October 2023, Fridman reportedly announced to return to Russia.
4. Victor Pinchuk (b. 1960)
With an HPI of 50.60, Victor Pinchuk is the 4th most famous Ukrainian Businessperson. His biography has been translated into 20 different languages.
Victor Mykhailovych Pinchuk (Ukrainian: Віктор Михайлович Пінчук, romanized: Viktor Mykhailovych Pinchuk; born 14 December 1960) is a Ukrainian businessman and oligarch. As of January 2016, Forbes magazine ranked him as 1,250th on the list of wealthiest people in the world, with a fortune of US$1.44 billion. Pinchuk is the founder of EastOne Group LLC, an international investing, project funding and financial advisory company based in London, and of Interpipe Group, one of Ukraine's leading pipe, wheel and steel producers. Pinchuk is the owner of four TV channels and a popular tabloid, Fakty i Kommentarii. He has been a member of the Ukrainian parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, for two consecutive terms from 1998 to 2006. He is married to Olena Pinchuk, the daughter of former Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma.
5. Leonid Fedun (b. 1956)
With an HPI of 44.77, Leonid Fedun is the 5th most famous Ukrainian Businessperson. His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.
Leonid Arnoldovich Fedun (Russian: Леонид Арнольдович Федун; born 5 April 1956) is a Ukrainian-born Russian billionaire businessman known for co-founding Russian oil company Lukoil. Until retiring in 2022, Fedun was vice president of Lukoil. He formerly served as president of FC Spartak Moscow before selling 100% of his shares to Lukoil. Prior to entering the private sector, he was a military officer. He is considered to be a close associate of Vagit Alekperov, who he co-founded Lukoil with. In February 18, 2022, Fedun was estimated to have had an estimated fortune of $8.5 billion, a figure that declined to $1.7 billion by March 28, 2022. Critics have labelled Fedun as an oligarch.
6. Maurice Podoloff (1890 - 1985)
With an HPI of 43.93, Maurice Podoloff is the 6th most famous Ukrainian Businessperson. His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.
Maurice Podoloff (Yiddish: מוריס פודולוף; August 18, 1890 – November 24, 1985) was an American lawyer and a basketball and ice hockey administrator. He served as the president of the Basketball Association of America (BAA) from 1946 to 1949, and the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1949 to 1963, making Podoloff the de facto 1st commissioner in NBA history.
People
Pantheon has 6 people classified as Ukrainian businesspeople born between 1890 and 1966. Of these 6, 5 (83.33%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Ukrainian businesspeople include Rinat Akhmetov, Viktor Vekselberg, and Mikhail Fridman. The most famous deceased Ukrainian businesspeople include Maurice Podoloff. As of April 2024, 2 new Ukrainian businesspeople have been added to Pantheon including Leonid Fedun, and Maurice Podoloff.
Living Ukrainian Businesspeople
Go to all Rankings
Rinat Akhmetov
1966 - Present
HPI: 56.50
Viktor Vekselberg
1957 - Present
HPI: 52.77
Mikhail Fridman
1964 - Present
HPI: 52.01
Victor Pinchuk
1960 - Present
HPI: 50.60
Leonid Fedun
1956 - Present
HPI: 44.77
