Patokh Chodiev

Patokh Chodiev
Born	15 April 1953 Uzbekistan

Patokh Chodiev (Russian: Фа́ттох Каюмович Шо́диев; Fáttoh Kayúmovich Shódiev; born 15 April 1953, in Jizzakh (Uzbek SSR), is a London-based Uzbek oligarch with Belgian citizenship who, with Alexander Mashkevich and Alijan Ibragimov, is part of the "Trio," a group of Central Asian businessmen who made their fortune through deals in minerals, oil, gas, and banking in Kazakhstan. Chodiev is currently ranked #1275 on the Forbes list of billionaires.

Patokh Chodiev was born in Uzbekistan. He studied international law and Japanese at the Moscow State Institute of International Affairs (MGIMO), graduating with a doctorate in political science. Speaking Japanese fluently, he joined the diplomatic service specializing in Russian-Japanese commercial relations and subsequently lived in Tokyo for a few years.

In 1996, Chodiev created an international charitable organization, the Chodiev Foundation, to promote innovation, art and education in Eurasia and Southeast Asia.

On 27 June 1997 Patokh Chodiev acquired Belgian citizenship. This led to a debate in the media about how his naturalization was obtained, since Chodiev does not speak any of the three official languages of Belgium (Dutch, French or German) fluently. Furthermore, the Belgian State Security Service expressed concerns about Chodiev’s relations to other Russian businessmen.

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