The Super-Rich in Modern Russia: Who Are They and Are They Changing?

Abstract

Abstract The study focuses on a hard-to-reach and relatively little-studied group that largely determines the configuration of wealth inequality in Russia today – the super-rich Russian businessmen. The object of the study are businessmen who have appeared on the Forbes lists from 2004 to 2021. Based on the analysis of the specially collected empirical database, the composition of the group by key socio-economic and demographic indicators is analyzed, its changes in the course of Russia’s modern history are traced, and the overall dynamics of the group are assessed. The high degree of stability of this group is demonstrated, as well as the high degree of internal inequality within it. Differences in the two sub-groups of the super-rich – those who entered the labor market in the pre-reform and post-reform periods – are identified. It is shown that these differences highlight the gradual changes taking place in this group. However, even today the pre-reform super-rich dominate the group and therefore determine its generalized portrait.