Tatiana Kim, Russia’s richest woman, has officially become the sole owner of the country’s largest online retailer, Wildberries, following a court ruling in Moscow that awarded her ex-husband Vladislav Bakalchuk’s remaining stake in the company.
The decision, confirmed by the company’s press service and reported by state media on Thursday, comes months after Kim and Bakalchuk finalized their divorce in February. The split followed a controversial merger between Wildberries and the outdoor advertising giant Russ Group in mid-2023, which ignited both personal and corporate conflict—escalating into a deadly shootout at Wildberries’ headquarters in September and drawing in high-profile figures, including Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov.
According to Wildberries Russ, the Savyolovsky District Court in Moscow ordered Bakalchuk to transfer his remaining 1% stake in Wildberries LLC to Kim. With this ruling, Kim now owns 100% of the company. The court also confirmed her ownership of Wildberries Bank and upheld her control over assets in her personal accounts, TASS reported.
President Vladimir Putin had approved the merger between Wildberries and Russ Group in June 2024, which was marketed as the foundation for a powerful financial, media, and retail conglomerate to counter Western tech dominance. Despite the state’s support for the business consolidation, the Kremlin refrained from intervening in the private dispute between the former spouses and co-founders.
While the merger was presented as a bold economic strategy, some Russian business analysts viewed it as peculiar and potentially part of a larger power struggle—particularly involving Kadyrov and billionaire senator Suleiman Kerimov. Tensions peaked last year when Kadyrov accused three lawmakers from neighboring North Caucasus republics of orchestrating the merger and plotting his assassination, prompting him to declare a “blood feud.”
The high-profile legal victory cements Kim’s position at the helm of one of Russia’s most influential tech enterprises, marking the end of a dramatic chapter in both her personal and professional life.
