Today, Igor Kolomoisky is second in the ranking of the richest Ukrainians. The creator of the Privat group has successfully invested its assets in the petrochemical industry, metallurgy, the agricultural sector and the banking sector. The businessman controls the country's largest media group and owns an airline. According to analysts, Privat includes about 100 enterprises in Ukraine and abroad.
Childhood and youth
The future oligarch was born in Ukrainian Dnepropetrovsk in 1963. The family had Jewish roots. Valery Grigoryevich and Zoya Izrailevna worked as engineers at Dnepropetrovsk enterprises. Igor grew up as a capable child. The young man brilliantly graduated from high school, received the first sports rank in chess. He easily became a student at the Metallurgical Institute and continued the family dynasty and received an engineering education. He began his career in one of the design organizations.
Privat Group
With the advent of perestroika, cooperative activity was actively developing in the country. Igor began it with friends Martynov and Bogolyubov in the cooperative "Zirconia". Soon, business partners organized Sentosa LLC. The guys brought office equipment and computers from Moscow and sold them at home. In the 90s, the organization began to trade in various goods, non-ferrous metals and oil. Sentosa, along with three other companies, became one of the founders of PrivatBank. The Privat group subsequently appeared on its base. During the privatization process, the bank collected 1.2 million vouchers - more than 2% of the total. As a result of fierce competition, the Dnepropetrovsk entrepreneur gained control of the leading oil producing company Ukrnafta, a number of Ukrainian refineries and the city market. Significantly increased the authority of the businessman, especially his leadership qualities stood out. It is worth saying that Igor Valerievich always adhered to strict financial management, defended his interests to the end even in trifles, and allowed himself to revise the rules in the process of work. He single-handedly controlled the group’s ferroalloy business and influenced many of its decisions. By that time, the organization’s activities spanned dozens of areas: from petrochemistry and non-ferrous metals to air travel and ski resorts. Kolomoisky owned a 40% stake in the bank, and his financial condition exceeded the mark of a billion dollars.
State service
In 2014, Igor Valerievich was appointed head of the administration of the Dnipropetrovsk region. He promised to fight separatism and start speaking Ukrainian. After the conflict began in the south-east of the country, the businessman took upon himself the financing of the Sturm and Dnepr volunteer battalions. The billionaire made a proposal to nationalize the property of pro-Russian oligarchs and distribute them to ATO participants. He also owned the idea of erecting barbed wire fences along the perimeter of the border with Russia. Kolomoisky’s interest in these events was explained by the fact that in the Donetsk and Lugansk regions there was a part of his metallurgical enterprises, which he did not want to lose control over. The financial and industrial oligarch, who owns enterprises in eastern Ukraine and smuggles his products through the Odessa port, actually controlled these two regions. Supporting the government, he often made independent decisions. Such a policy could not please the Ukrainian authorities. Kolomoisky was seen as the third center of power in Ukraine after Kiev and the Donbass, according to journalists, representing "an internal threat to President Poroshenko." The forces of the SBU and the Prosecutor General’s Office began to discredit the leadership of the Dnipropetrovsk region. The chairman of the regional administration was called "the largest raider in Ukraine." Soon, the president signed a decree, which relieved the head of the region from his post. After that, the official gave up politics. The pressure of the authorities on his financial and industrial empire manifested itself in situations with Ukrnafta, when the state, the main holder of the shares, demanded its share of the profit, then a “technical failure” occurred in Privatbank. And two years later, the largest institution in the Ukrainian banking sector, numbering customers in 12 countries, was declared insolvent and nationalized. It was like a real political war against the Dnepropetrovsk team.
Social work
The career of a public figure in Kolomoisky was marked by many significant projects. His contribution to the opening of the capital's museum of the Artistic Arsenal complex is particularly notable. The businessman greatly supported the restoration of the ancient appearance of the Hurva synagogue and the tunnels at the Western Wall in Jerusalem. The oligarch’s assistance to the Dnepropetrovsk Jewish community, for which he specially built the Menorah Center, was invaluable. Igor Valerievich joined the board of trustees of the city community, and then headed the Ukrainian Jewish organization. He then represented the country during the work of the European Council of Jewish Communities.
Kolomoisky invested a significant part of his funds in financing the Dnipro football team and Dnipropetrovsk basketball and hockey clubs. In addition to a profitable enterprise, this is a tribute to the love of sports, brought up in childhood.
