Samvel Karapetyan (businessman)

For the Armenian historian, see Samvel Karapetyan (author).
Samvel Karapetyan
Born (1965-08-18) August 18, 1965 (age 59)[1]
Kalinino (now Tashir),[1] Soviet Armenia, USSR
EducationYerevan Polytechnic Institute
OccupationProperty developer
SpouseMarried
Children3
Awards

Samvel Karapetyan (Armenian: Սամվել Սարգսի Կարապետյան; Russian: Самвел Саркисович Карапетян; born August 18, 1965) is a Russian-Armenian billionaire businessman who owns the Tashir Group conglomerate.

Biography

Samvel Karapetyan was born on August 18, 1965, in the town of Kalinino (now Tashir, Lori province) in the Armenian SSR.[citation needed]

Karapetyan graduated from the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering of Yerevan Polytechnic Institute in 1986. He moved to Russia in the 1990s and in 1997, he became the president of the Kaluga-based Kalugaglavsnab OAO, which provides logistics services, particularly to Russia's state gas company Gazprom.[2] He then expanded into Moscow's real estate market.[2] In 1999, he established the Tashir Group, a conglomerate of industrial, construction, supply and delivery companies, hotels, restaurants and other firms numbering more than 200 in total and employing more than 30,000 people.[1][2]

Karapetyan's Tashir Group has made a number of investments and philanthropic endeavors in Armenia and the Republic of Artsakh. Tashir Group owns two large shopping complexes in Yerevan, as well as a major Armenian electricity company, Electric Networks of Armenia, among other enterprises.[2] In 2013, Karapetyan financed the construction of a new hospital in Stepanakert, capital of the Republic of Artsakh.[3] At the end of October 2020, Karapetyan vowed to rebuild the maternity hospital of Stepanakert City that was destroyed by the Azerbaijani bombardment on October 28.[4] In September 2021, he announced that Tashir Group plans to invest $600 million to expand and modernize Armenia's energy sector.[5]

In June 2020, Karapetyan paid the part of the 2 billion dram bail for ex-president of Armenia Robert Kocharyan's release from custody.[6]

In April 2021, the Prosecutor General's Office of Azerbaijan opened a criminal case against Karapetyan for allegedly illegally transporting weapons to Nagorno-Karabakh, which Karapetyan denied.[7]

Personal life

He is married, with three children (two sons and a daughter), and lives in Moscow.[8][9] Karapetyan's son, Sarkis, and daughter, Tatevik, are top managers of Tashir. Tatevik also heads the area of cinema chain development.[10] He owns an 85 meter Lurssen superyacht named ACE.[11]

His brother, Karen Karapetyan (not to be confused with former prime minister of Armenia Karen Karapetyan), is a politician in Armenia from the Republican Party of Armenia and a former member of Armenia's parliament.[12]

In 2011, President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan awarded Karapetyan with the Mesrop Mashtots Medal "for significant contribution to the promotion of national interests, long term and fruitful pro-Armenian activities, dedication to the development and advancement of the Republic of Armenia and provided services."[13]

In November 2017, he was appointed the president of the football club FC Ararat Moscow.[14]

Wealth

According to Forbes, his net worth in September 2021 was estimated at $5 billion.[15] In March 2013 Karapetyan became the richest ethnic Armenian in the world, overtaking Armenian-American businessman Kirk Kerkorian.[16][17]

Ties to Putin

In January 2018 Karapetyan was named by the US Treasury Department in the Putin list, consisting of 114 senior political figures and 96 oligarchs, all of whom rose to prominence under Russian President Vladimir Putin.[18][19]

References

  1. ^ a b c "Самвел Карапетян Биография". Vedomosti (in Russian). Retrieved 17 February 2015.
  2. ^ a b c d Danielyan, Emil (2017-11-02). "Russian-Armenian Tycoon Expanding Influence in Armenia". eurasianet.org. Retrieved 2021-09-26.
  3. ^ "Tashir group invests USD 22 mln in new medical center in Stepanakert". mediamax.am. 2013-09-24. Retrieved 2021-09-26.
  4. ^ "Tycoon Samvel Karapetyan vows to rebuild Stepanakert hospital after Azeri air strike". armenpress.am. Retrieved 2021-07-07.
  5. ^ "Samvel Karapetyan plans to invest nearly 600 million USD in Armenia's energy sector". armenpress.am. 2021-09-20. Retrieved 2021-09-26.
  6. ^ "Российские бизнесмены выплатили залог за экс-президента Армении". РБК. 20 June 2020.
  7. ^ "Tashir group of companies says Azerbaijani accusations against Samvel Karapetyan are outrageous". arka.am. 2021-06-18. Retrieved 2021-09-26.
  8. ^ "Հպարտ եմ, որ հայ եմ. Սամվել Կարապետյանի զրույցը Forbes-ի հետ". CivilNet (in Armenian). 16 February 2015.
  9. ^ "Forbes profile: Samvel Karapetyan". Forbes. Retrieved 18 August 2020.
  10. ^ "Samvel Karapetyan". forbes.com. Retrieved 2024-01-12.
  11. ^ TARMAC, L'AMI DU (2020-07-09), ACE 85M 2012 Lürssen Yachts Owner Samvel Karapetyan Russia For sale EUR145 millions 09 07 20 Golfe de St Tropez, retrieved 2021-08-13
  12. ^ "Sargsyan appoints brother of billionaire as new Armenian PM | The Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin". Retrieved 2020-12-05.
  13. ^ "President Serzh Sargsyan attended the ceremony of inauguration of the research compound of Matenadaran - Domestic visits - Updates - The President of the Republic of Armenia". www.president.am. Retrieved 2019-09-05.
  14. ^ Президентом ФК ”Арарат” избран Самвел Карапетян (in Russian). FC Ararat Moscow. 17 November 2017.
  15. ^ "Samvel Karapetyan". Forbes. 2021-09-26. Retrieved 2021-09-26.
  16. ^ "Russian-Armenian beats U.S.-Armenian on latest Forbes billionaire list". ArmeniaNow. 5 March 2013. Retrieved 29 April 2013.
  17. ^ "World's richest Armenians according to Forbes; Kerkorian no longer leads list". Tert.am. 5 March 2013. Retrieved 29 April 2013.
  18. ^ Sheena McKenzie, Nicole Gaouette and Donna Borak (30 January 2018). "Full list of Russian oligarchs released by US". CNN. Retrieved 2019-09-05.
  19. ^ "Samvel Karapetyan and Danil Khachaturov in US black books". arka.am. Retrieved 2019-09-05.