Wildberries Founder Becomes Russia’s Richest Woman

For the first time in more than a decade, businesswoman Yelena Baturina is no longer Russia’s wealthiest woman, Forbes Russia reported Thursday.

That honor now goes to Tatyana Bakalchuk, 44, the founder and head of the private online clothing retailer Wildberries. Both Baturina and Bakalchuk cemented their status as Russia’s only women billionaires last year.

Forbes estimated Bakalchuk’s net worth at $1.4 billion on Thursday, surpassing Baturina’s $1.2 billion.

Bakalchuk, a former English teacher, earned an extra $400 million last year, Forbes said. It said her net worth increased after Wildberries showed an 88% revenue increase to 223.5 billion rubles ($3.56 billion) in 2019.

Baturina, 56, the widow of former Moscow Mayor Yury Luzhkov, had dominated the Forbes list since 2004, when her net worth totaled $1 billion.