Rich and quiet: How Putin secured billionaire loyalty during war

WISE NEWS PRESS / ANKARA, TURKEY — JAN. 3, 2026

The number of billionaires in Russia has reached an all-time high during the war with Ukraine, even as Western sanctions aimed to cripple the country's elite. However, unlike the chaotic era of the 1990s, today's ultra-wealthy have lost almost all political influence, trading their voice for the preservation of their fortunes under President Vladimir Putin.

While the West hoped sanctions would turn the business elite against the Kremlin, analysts say Putin has successfully used a "carrot and stick" approach to transform potential dissidents into silent enablers of the war economy.

'Like being taken hostage': The Tinkov case

Former banking tycoon Oleg Tinkov experienced the "stick" firsthand. A day after he criticized the invasion of Ukraine on Instagram as "insanity," Kremlin officials contacted his executives with an ultimatum: cut ties with the founder or face nationalization.

"I couldn't discuss the price. It was like a hostage - you take what you are offered. I couldn't negotiate," Tinkov told the New York Times.

He was forced to sell his stake in Tinkoff Bank—then Russia's second-largest lender—for roughly 3 percent of its actual value to a company linked to Vladimir Potanin, a mining magnate loyal to the Kremlin. Tinkov subsequently lost billions and fled the country.

The death of the old oligarchy

The current dynamic marks a stark contrast to the pre-Putin era, when "oligarchs" like Boris Berezovsky wielded immense political power. Today, that influence has evaporated. When Putin summoned the country’s top business leaders to the Kremlin hours after the invasion began on February 24, 2022, they were described as "pale and sleepless," understanding that objection was not an option.

"I hope that we will continue to work together in the same way in these new conditions," Putin told them, effectively setting the terms of their survival.

War economy creates new elite

Despite initial losses in 2022, the war economy has proven lucrative for those who stayed. Fueled by massive military spending, Russia's economy grew by more than 4 percent annually in 2023 and 2024.

According to Forbes, the number of Russian billionaires dropped from 117 to 83 in the immediate aftermath of the invasion but has since rebounded to 140—a record high. The total wealth of this group stands at $580 billion.

Giacomo Tognini of Forbes notes that in 2024, more than half of Russia's billionaires were either directly involved in military supply chains or benefited from the exodus of Western companies. "I think it is safe to say that anyone doing business in Russia has to be involved with the government," Tognini told the BBC.

Oleg Tinkov lost billions and fled Russia after criticizing the war in Ukraine. (Photo: Chris Graythen/Getty Images)

Sanctions backfire

Experts argue that Western sanctions may have inadvertently strengthened Putin's grip on the elite. By targeting assets abroad and freezing accounts, the West left Russian billionaires with no "exit strategy."

"The West did everything possible to make Russian billionaires unite under [Putin's] flag," said Alexander Kolyandr of the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA). "No plan, no idea, no clear path was offered for any of them to jump ship."

With no safe haven abroad, Russian capital has been forced inward, reinvested into the domestic war economy, creating a new class of "effective and active loyalists" whose future prosperity is entirely dependent on the Kremlin's survival.

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