- Vladimir Potanin
:"This article is about Vladimir Potanin. For other uses, see
Potanin .Vladimir Olegovich Potanin ("Владимир Олегович Потанин" in Russian) (born
1961 ,Moscow , formerUSSR ), is a self-made Russianoligarch . His partner has beenMikhail Prokhorov . He acquired his wealth through the controversialloans-for-shares programme inRussia .Education
Vladimir Potanin attended the
Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO), an elite school that groomed students for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Upon graduating MGIMO, he followed in his father's footsteps and went to work for the Soviet Department of Trade.Career
In 1993, Potanin became President of United Export Import Bank. From
August 14 1996 untilMarch 17 1997 he worked as First Deputy Prime Minister of theRussian Federation . Since August1998 , Potanin has held the positions of the President and the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the
Interros Company.Since March
2003 Potanin has taken charge of the National Council on Corporate Governance (NSKU), whose main goal is to improve the legislative regulations inRussia and to introduce professional and ethical standards ofcorporate governance into the operations of Russian companies to boost up the reputation and investment appeal of the Russian business.Since December
2001 he has been a member of the Board of Trustees of theSolomon R. Guggenheim Foundation (NYC). In April2003 Potanin was elected Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the State Hermitage. Since2005 Potanin has been a member of the Public Chamber of Russia.In January
2007 inParis Potanin was named an Officer of the prestigious Order of Arts and Literature for his cultural contributions. The French Ministry of Culture and Communications granted the award.Personal life
Married with three children, he is fluent in English and French.
His hobbies include: traveling, football, alpine skiing, various water sports and chess. Fact|date=March 2008
External links
* [http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/commandingheights/shared/minitextlo/int_vladimirpotanin.html Biography]
* [http://www.forbes.com/lists/2007/10/07billionaires_Vladimir-Potanin_KZ32.html Forbes.com - The World's Billionaires - #38 Vladimir Potanin]
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