Vladimir Lisin

Vladimir Lisin
Born	(1956-05-07) May 7, 1956 Ivanovo, Russia
Occupation(s)	Entrepreneur, steel industry executive
Known for	Chairman and majority owner of Novolipetsk Steel (NLMK)

Vladimir Sergeyevich Lisin (born 7 May 1956) is a Russian billionaire entrepreneur, serving as chairman and majority owner of Novolipetsk (NLMK), which ranks among Russia's top four steel manufacturers.

Per the Bloomberg Billionaires Index and Forbes, as of 2025, he stands as the second wealthiest individual in Russia after Alexey Mordashov, with an estimated net worth of US$30.0 billion, placing him 64th worldwide. In 2022, Forbes ranked him third among Russian billionaires, valuing his fortune at $22.1 billion.

Background

Lisin's professional journey commenced in 1975 when he worked as an electrical fitter at a Soviet coal mine, later advancing to the position of welder foreman at Tulachermet Metals Works. By 1986, he had risen to deputy chief engineer. In 1992, he became part of the Trans-World Group, through which he gained influence over Russia’s steel and aluminum industries. Following the group's division in 2000, he acquired a controlling interest in Novolipetsk Steel.

Since 1993, Lisin has held board memberships at prominent Russian metal producers such as NLMK, MMK, Sayansk, and Novokuznetsk Aluminium Plants. He joined NLMK’s board in 1996 and assumed the chairmanship in 1998. Additionally, he occupied leadership roles at Kazakhstan’s Karaganda Steel Plant.

His directorships have extended to Zenit Bank, CJSC Chernomorneftegaz, Norilsk Nickel Mining and Metallurgical Company, and he has chaired JSC Novolipetsk Iron & Steel Corporation since 2007. Between 2008 and 2012, he served as an independent board member at OJSC United Shipbuilding Corporation. Until January 2023, Lisin was a bureau member of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, from which he voluntarily resigned.

Lisin’s investment portfolio spans transportation and logistics—including stakes in St Petersburg Sea Port, Tuapse Commercial Sea Port, North-Western Shipping Company, and Volga Shipping Company—alongside energy interests in Chernomorneftegaz and Severneftegaz, as well as utilities such as Federal Grid Company and Distribution Grid Company of Center. These holdings are predominantly managed via Fletcher Group Holdings. In mid-2023, he established Serenity II Holdings and Nebula II Holdings in Abu Dhabi, relocating his assets there.

Education and metallurgical expertise

He earned a degree in metallurgical engineering from the Siberian Metallurgic Institute in 1979, specializing in "Foundry of irons and non-ferrous metals." In 1984, he completed postgraduate studies remotely at UKRNIIMET (Kharkov, Ukraine), obtaining another degree in metallurgical engineering. By 1989, he had secured an MSc in metal engineering from the Central Research Institute of Ferrous Metallurgy named after I. P. Bardin (Moscow). In 1990, he graduated from the higher commercial school under the All-Union Academy of Foreign Trade with a diploma focused on "Administration and activity management of joint ventures in the USSR" (Moscow). Two years later, in 1992, he received an MSc in Economics and Management from the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA). He pursued doctoral studies at Moscow Institute of Steel and Alloys (MISiS) Faculty of Engineering starting in 1996 and completed his PhD thesis on metallurgical engineering by 1997. By 1999 he was appointed professor at RANEPA and later earned a doctorate in economics from the Russian Academy of Economics in 2005.

Lisin holds numerous patents related to metallurgical technologies and has authored over 100 publications covering metallurgy and economics topics, including fifteen monographs. His accolades include the Council of Ministers' award for science and engineering (1989), recognition as Honorary Metallurgist of Russia (1999), knighthood in the Order of Honour of the Russian Federation (2000), and knighthood in the Order of St. Sergiy Radonezhsky (2001).

Sports

Lisin is deeply engaged in shooting sports and has held several prominent leadership roles in this field. He was the president of the European Shooting Confederation until October 2021, directed the Russia Shooting Union, and currently serves as vice president of the Russian Olympic Committee. In 2013, he became a member of the ISSF Executive Committee. Near Moscow, at Lisya Nora, he established one of the continent’s most extensive shooting-range facilities. In November 2018, Lisin was chosen as president of the International Shooting Sport Federation, taking over from Olegario Vázquez Raña.

After the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, Australia imposed sanctions on Lisin; however, he declined to step down from his ISSF presidency. ISSF Secretary General Alexander Ratner backed him, affirming that neither had connections with the Russian government.

Personal life

Lisin is married and has three children. In 2005, he purchased Aberuchill Castle, a historic 17th-century estate located in Perthshire, Scotland.

In March 2022, Lisin appealed for peaceful conflict resolution in a letter addressed to NLMK employees, highlighting that "Lost lives are always a huge tragedy that is impossible to justify." Nevertheless, by September 2022, allegations surfaced claiming that NLMK supplied materials to Russian companies involved in nuclear weapons programs and that tankers owned by Lisin were implicated in circumventing EU sanctions through oil trans-shipment. Subsequently, in October 2022, there were calls for the United States to impose sanctions on Lisin.

In response, NLMK and Lisin clarified that their Russian operations manufacture steel exclusively for civilian applications and have never provided military-grade products to Russia's defense industry, though they conceded they cannot control how civilian products are ultimately used. Regarding the vessels linked to sanctions evasion, the company stated they had been sold by September 2022 due to lack of profitability.

See also

• List of Russian billionaires