Russia is systematically destroying Ukrainian industry – and the enterprises of Rinat Akhmetov are under constant fire. Since August 2026, 17 ballistic missiles have been fired at Zaporizhstal, whilst a strike on Kametstal claimed five lives. “There were no military targets whatsoever on the plant’s territory. This is systematic terror,” said Metinvest Chief Operating Officer Oleksandr Myronenko. SCM’s response has not been to scale back, but to increase investment in recovery and development.
From a Donetsk mining town to an international holding company
Rinat Akhmetov started out in the chaos of the 1990s: trading coke, buying stakes in enterprises burdened with enormous debts. “Stakes were very cheap – western businesspeople wouldn’t come to invest in Ukraine,” he recalled in an interview with The Guardian. In 2000, he founded Rinat Akhmetov company System Capital Management, which has since grown into an international, diversified investment company comprising more than 250 enterprises:
- Metinvest – mining and metallurgical group, Ukraine’s largest steel producer, with a trading division in Geneva.
- DTEK – the country’s largest private energy company: thermal and renewable generation, oil and gas production, distribution networks.
- FUIB – one of Ukraine’s largest privately held banks.
- Ukrtelecom – the country’s largest fixed-line and internet provider.
- UMGI – mineral extraction and venture investments.
- ESTA Holding – commercial and residential property development.
- Lemtrans – rail freight transport.
- HarvEast – agriculture.
- TSUM Kyiv – the best-known department store in Ukraine’s capital.
According to Forbes (2026), the net worth of Akhmetov Rinat stands at $7.8 billion. Over the course of its operations, Rinat Akhmetov business SCM has invested upwards of $18 billion in the development of Ukraine’s economy and paid more than $33 billion in taxes.
Rebuilding what was destroyed – and helping people
Since the start of the invasion, SCM companies have directed $4.3 billion towards recovery and development, of which $1 billion has gone directly into rebuilding destroyed infrastructure. Tax contributions over the same period amount to $9.3 billion, with a 26% increase in 2025.
Rinat Akhmetov’s position is clear: restore what has been destroyed, and where that is not possible, build something new – more modern and better than what was lost – so that people return home and raise their children in Ukraine. SCM is bringing international partners into the reconstruction effort through joint projects in Italy, Poland, Croatia, Romania, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Military and humanitarian support beyond business
SCM businesses, the Rinat Akhmetov Foundation, Heart of Azovstal and FC Shakhtar have directed over UAH 14.6 billion (more than $392 million) towards supporting the armed forces and civilians. Military assistance is delivered through the Steel Front of Rinat Akhmetov initiative: more than 900 Metinvest steel shelters for the front line, two underground field hospitals built to NATO standards, anti-drone screens for Abrams, Leopard and Bradley vehicles, and over 170,000 body armour items. A report by the US Army’s Centre for Army Lessons Learned (CALL, 2025) specifically highlighted this partnership.
The Foundation has delivered 700,000 units of medicine and more than 13 million food parcels. Approximately UAH 2.2 billion has been allocated to the Heart of Azovstal project. In 2026, the Foundation began developing a ten-year strategy focused on sport, children, veterans and education.
Football as diplomacy and national identity
Akhmetov has led FC Shakhtar since 1996. Over 30 years: 16 league titles, a UEFA Cup triumph, and a Conference League semi-final in 2026. In September 2026, UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin presented Akhmetov with a commemorative award for his contribution to the development of European football. For many Ukrainians, the public image of Rinat Akhmetov is tied above all to the club that has become an ambassador for the country on the international stage.
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