Timur Kulibayev

Timur Askaruly Kulibayev (Kazakh: Тимур Асқарұлы Құлыбаев, Timur Asqarūly Qūlybayev, [tɘjˈmur ɑsˌqɑrʊˈɫɤ qʊɫɤˈbɑjɪf]; born 10 September 1966) is a Kazakh businessman. He is the son-in-law of former Kazakh president Nursultan Nazarbayev. He is known as Kazakhstan's "Oil Prince" due to his connections to Kazakh political elites and Kazakh state-owned energy companies. Kulibayev held several high-level government positions during his father-in-law's rule of Kazakhstan, including in Kazakh state-owned enterprises that manage Kazakhstan's natural resources and have immense influence over the country's hydrocarbon industry. He is the former head of Samruk-Kazyna (Kazakhstan's sovereign wealth fund). He was on the board of directors of the Gazprom, Russia's largest energy company from 2011 to 2022. In 2020, the Financial Times reported that Kulibayev was involved in schemes to skim at least tens of millions of dollars from contracts that the Kazakhstani state made on pipeline construction. Kuliabayev and his wife's wealth have been estimated at more than $10 billion. Kulibayev has been called "the most important business figure" in the Republic of Kazakhstan by The Daily Telegraph.