Vagit Alekperov, who led the Russian oil company Lukoil from 1993 to 2022, is ranked No. 81 on the Forbes 2026 World’s Billionaires list, tied with François Pinault, with a net worth of $29.5 billion. He is under sanctions in several countries.
Vagit Yusufovich Alekperov was born on September 1, 1950, in Baku, in the Azerbaijan SSR, then one of the world’s earliest oil centres. His father, who died when he was a boy, worked in the oilfields all his life, and Alekperov followed him into the industry. His father was an Azerbaijani Muslim and his mother was a Russian Orthodox Christian.
Net Worth and Rank
- Forbes 2026 list: No. 81 (tied with François Pinault), with $29.5 billion; Wikipedia says this made him the third-wealthiest person in Russia
- Bloomberg: on August 24, 2026, its index put him at $21.0 billion, fifth in Russia and 125th in the world
Career
- 1974: he graduated from the Azerbaijan Oil and Chemistry Institute with an engineering degree
- 1979–1985: he worked in Western Siberia at Surgutneftegaz, building a reputation as an industry expert, and by 1985 was first deputy general director of Bashneft’s production company
- 1987: he became general director of the new production company Kogalymneftegaz
- 1990: he was appointed deputy minister of the Soviet oil and gas industry, the youngest deputy energy minister
- April 1993: Langepas-Uray-Kogalymneft became the joint-stock company Lukoil, and he became its president and chairman; by 2002 he owned 10.4% of it
Lukoil
In November 2000 Lukoil bought Getty Petroleum Marketing and its 1,300 US petrol stations, the first acquisition of an American company by a Russian one. In May 2008 Alekperov bought 1.3% more of Lukoil, raising his stake to 20.4% and making him its largest shareholder. He remained president until 2022.
Sports and Sanctions
- Football: he previously owned 36.8% of Spartak Moscow
- Yachts: he owned the superyacht builder Heesen Yachts until 2022
- Sanctions: as part of the international response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and New Zealand have imposed sanctions on him, according to Wikipedia
Why It Matters
Lukoil is one of Russia’s largest oil companies, and Alekperov’s wealth depends on the value of his stake and on the impact of sanctions on Russian energy.
Net worth figures change daily with share prices. Rankings here follow the Forbes 2026 World’s Billionaires list, with wealth measured on March 1, 2026.
Image: Vagit Alekperov (centre) at a meeting in June 2010. Photo: Рустем Кадыров / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 4.0)
