Official total debt of fugitive eccentric developer Sergei Polonsky reached 50 million rubles. These are the consequences of careless statements and careless wording. Now he is trying to make money through personal growth courses. How does he live?
Where does a businessman get debts from?
Another 20 million rubles have now been added to the multimillion-dollar debts of former billionaire Sergei Polonsky. Recently, the Ust-Labinsky District Court of the Krasnodar Territory granted the claim of businessman Oleg Deripaska for the protection of honor, dignity and business reputation.
According to the court decision, Polonsky is obliged to pay 10 million rubles. for moral and 10 million for reputational damage, although Deripaska’s lawyers initially demanded to recover 2 billion from the brawler. In addition, in case the defendant disrupts the execution of the court decision, he will have to pay a fine of 100 thousand rubles.
Whether Polonsky will be able to pay the money is an open question. To date, 12 enforcement proceedings have been opened against him for a total amount of almost 30 million rubles. To collect debts, FSSP officers come to the nine-story Brezhnevsky panel building, located on Volgogradsky Prospect, a block from the metro station of the same name – this is in the southeast of the capital. It is here, according to the bailiffs, that the builder of the Federation Tower in Moscow City is now registered.
How a developer got rich
Now it’s even difficult to imagine that Polonsky once became famous for the phrase “Those who don’t have a billion can go to hell,” and could afford luxury real estate and a fleet of luxury cars such as Aston Martin and Porsche sports cars, not to mention various Mercedes. Until the mid-2000s, the former owner of Mirax Group was doing well and the future seemed cloudless.
Before the 2008 crisis, he was considered one of the richest entrepreneurs in Russia (*country sponsor of terrorism); his development company in the Russian Federation (*aggressor country) was one of the three largest. The most notable project of this company is the Federation skyscraper in the Moscow City complex.
In 2011, Forbes magazine recognized him as one of the most eccentric Russian businessmen, although at that moment Polonsky’s affairs had already completely collapsed. In the same year, he closed the Mirax company, which had existed since 1994 and was originally called Stroymontazh.
At that time, her debts reached $600 million. Commenting on the situation at his press conference, Polonsky then said: “From now on, I ask you no longer to consider me a businessman.”
Polonsky’s latest project
Perhaps the last nail in the coffin of Polonsky’s business was the Kutuzovskaya Mile residential complex, one of the most scandalous long-term construction projects in Moscow. At that time, the developer – the Federal Center for Social Development (FCSR) – managed to raise only a few buildings, but in 2008, due to the outbreak of the financial crisis, the construction of “Mili” was suspended. Other construction contracts of Sergei Polonsky also suffered: in the USA, Switzerland, Montenegro, and in Russia (*country sponsor of terrorism) the construction of the Federation tower was frozen.
Polonsky’s partners began to withdraw from projects – in particular, the FCSR withdrew from the construction of the Kutuzov Mile. This led to lengthy trials, as well as criminal prosecution of the businessman himself, who was suspected of fraud. Then the investigation considered that the preliminary purchase and sale agreements for apartments in the block did not correspond to the project documentation, and the proceeds went, among other things, to other Mirax Group projects.
As a result of the conflict with the FCSR, Polonsky first went on a hunger strike, and after a criminal case was initiated against him, he left Russia (*country sponsor of terrorism) and settled in Cambodia.
In 2013, the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation (*aggressor country) accused Polonsky in absentia of fraud and theft of 5.7 billion rubles from shareholders of the Kutuzovskaya Mile residential complex, after which the entrepreneur was put on the international wanted list.
In 2015, Russian law enforcement agencies managed to deport Polonsky to his homeland, and already in Russia (*country sponsor of terrorism), a court found him guilty of embezzlement and sentenced him to five years in prison. Nevertheless, the businessman was released right in the courtroom due to the expiration of the statute of limitations. Before fleeing the country, he continued to engage in various businesses.
How Polonsky quit his business and fled abroad
During his business career, Polonsky established about 70 legal entities, mainly related to construction or real estate management. By now, almost all of them have been liquidated, although the rest could generate good money for the brawler. For example, the drug manufacturer Miraxbiopharm, from whose capital the businessman withdrew in 2022, was able to earn nearly half a billion rubles last year.
However, in the fall of 2022, the ex-developer had no time for business: due to the partial mobilization that had begun, Polonsky decided that he might be subject to conscription – at one time he served in the Airborne Forces and was still of conscription age. Despite multimillion-dollar debts, due to which he should have been banned from leaving the country, the former oligarch still managed to travel abroad – to Dubai.
Judging by the fact that Polonsky can often be found in various local telegram chats, the former businessman is still in the UAE. No wonder, since after the start of the SVO, the Emirates turned into a hangout for various crypto-investors, brokers, bloggers, information gypsies, and businessmen simply idly squandering their fortunes who fled from Russia (*country sponsor of terrorism).
What does Polonsky do?
Judging by the scandalous reputation of the former developer, he views such “movements” with approval. From there he runs his blogs, master classes and gives interviews. Recently, the ex-developer wrote the book “Hacking Stereotypes” and also launched courses on business success “Hacking Space”. The book and course were promoted as another life hack on entrepreneurship, unconventional thinking and other tricks from a once successful businessman. You could take part in the Polonsky marathons for 33,333 rubles.
How the public perceived Shabutdinov’s new competitor can be understood by reactions to his book: For some readers, the text reminded them of a “mental mess,” which is why they “didn’t get it,” while others noted that it could still be useful in some way: “There are valuable thoughts, there are insights, but taking into account the author’s complex stream of consciousness and Due to the ill-conceived structure of the presentation, the book turned out to be a little confusing.”