Mikhail Khodorkovsky
| Mikhail Khodorkovsky | |
|---|---|
Khodorkovsky in 2013 after his release from prison
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| Born |
Mikhail Borisovich Khodorkovsky 26 June 1963 Moscow, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union |
| Nationality | Russian |
| Alma mater | Mendeleev Russian University of Chemistry and Technology |
| Occupation | Head of Group Menatep (1990–2003) Deputy Ministry of Energy (1993) Chairman & CEO of Yukos (1997–2004) The New Times Columnist (2011–2014) Founder of Open Russia (2014–present) |
| Net worth |
 ~$500 million (2015) |
| Spouse(s) | Yelena Dobrovolskaya (divorced) Inna Khodorkovskaya |
| Children | 4 |
Mikhail Borisovich Khodorkovsky (Russian: Михаи́л Бори́сович Ходорко́вский, IPA: [mʲɪxɐˈil xədɐˈrkofskʲɪj]; born 26 June 1963) is an exiled Russian businessman, philanthropist and former oligarch, now resident in Switzerland.
In 2003, Khodorkovsky was believed to be the wealthiest man in Russia (with a fortune estimated to be worth $15 billion) and was ranked 16th on Forbes list of billionaires. He had worked his way up the Komsomol apparatus during the Soviet years, and started several businesses during the period of glasnost and perestroika in the late 1980s. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, in the mid-1990s, he accumulated considerable wealth through obtaining control of a series of Siberian oil fields unified under the name Yukos, one of the major companies to emerge from the privatization of state assets during the 1990s (a scheme known as "Loans for Shares").
In October 2003, he was arrested and charged with fraud. The government under Russian president Vladimir Putin then froze shares of Yukos shortly thereafter on tax charges. Putin's government took further actions against Yukos, leading to a collapse of the company's share price and the evaporation of much of Khodorkovsky's wealth. In May 2005, he was found guilty and sentenced to nine years in prison. In December 2010, while he was still serving his sentence, Khodorkovsky and his business partner Platon Lebedev were further charged with and found guilty of embezzlement and money laundering; Khodorkovsky's prison sentence was extended to 2014. After Hans-Dietrich Genscher lobbied for his release, President Vladimir Putin pardoned Khodorkovsky, releasing him from jail on 20 December 2013.
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