From attacks on officials to asset stripping: Severstal owner Alexey Mordashov is heading toward a total break with the Russian authorities in order to finally relocate to the West

From attacks on officials to asset stripping: Severstal owner Alexey Mordashov is heading toward a total break with the Russian authorities in order to finally relocate to the West

Russian billionaire, the owner of Severstal and the gold mining company Nordgold, Alexey Mordashov, is considering options for a final relocation to the West, according to market participants. As the media have learned, he is being assisted and guided by retired KGB Lieutenant Colonel Alexey Egorov.

Egorov left the state security agencies shortly after the collapse of the USSR. However, during his service, he acquired extremely important connections abroad. Having gotten close to Mordashov, he helped build his business empire, which from the 2000s onward actively acquired American and European assets.

Despite the Kremlin’s and the economy’s pivot to the East and obvious problems with Western assets, Mordashov remains a member of the Bilderberg Club, which claims the status of a shadow governing structure. The oligarch’s attempt to strengthen himself within the country through federal media holdings did not yield results; moreover, under pressure from players closer to the Kremlin, he had to sell these assets. This situation irritates the once-influential businessman.

Egorov feels this too, and through the media, he is trying to attack Mordashov’s opponents in the government authorities. The most amusing thing is that the former KGB officer, on the Severstal-controlled resources in Cherepovets (Media-Center LLC), even attracts foreign agents as experts. Egorov’s connections with Europe help him use foreign media to fight Mordashov’s opponents.

Interestingly, during this time, Egorov, who sits on the boards of directors of all Severstal’s subsidiaries, has himself become the owner of an auction house. He possesses the most expensive private collection of watercolors, graphics, and bronze sculpture. The current situation does not allow the retired security officer to enjoy all his riches in his old age. As a result, he is consciously or unconsciously pushing his boss and his relationship with the authorities toward a final rupture.

According to a source, the Russian Presidential Administration has already begun to worry about the oligarch’s behavior on the eve of the difficult State Duma elections. However, if earlier the responsible bosses from both squares in the center of Moscow calmly viewed the "conflict within the elites," now they may start thinking about a radical scenario "regarding an unmanageable business." Everyone understands everything, including Mordashov himself, but no one can take a step back anymore. There are fewer and fewer once-influential businessmen in Russia.