Denis Sverdlov

Denis Lvovich Sverdlov (born 6 June 1978) is a British-based Russian businessman, and the founder and former CEO of Arrival, a former British electric vehicle manufacturer that was based in London. The businessman who was worth $11.7 billion in April 2021 lost his billionaire status in April 2022. Sverdlov's 94% decline in net worth is the largest wealth loss of anyone outside China who appeared on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index in 2021.[1] In 2012–13, he was Russia's deputy minister for communications and mass media.

Early life

Sverdlov was born in 1978 in Agara in the then Soviet republic of Georgia.[2] He was raised in Saint Petersburg by his engineer parents who were employed at a state-operated factory specializing in manufacturing fan blades used in electrical turbines.[3] He has a degree in economics from Saint Petersburg State University of Engineering and Economics.[4]

Career

After graduating in 2000 Sverdlov founded IT Vision, an IT consulting firm.[5]

From 2003 to 2007, Sverdlov was the co-founder and managing partner of Korus Consulting, an IT consulting firm in Russia.[5]

Sverdlov was a co-founder and chief executive of Yota, a Russian mobile broadband company, until its acquisition by MegaFon in 2012.[4] He sold the Yota for $1.2 billion.[6]

Post-acquisition Sverdlov set up the Kinetik Trust to invest in a range of promising technologies and bring them to market.[7]

He was Russia's deputy Communications and Mass Media Minister for 15 months before stepping down in 2013.[4] He left this position following new legislation which banned government officials from holding assets abroad.[8]

Sverdlov founded Arrival and began its operations in the UK in 2015.[9] He was its CEO from March 2016 until November 2022.[10] In March 2021 Arrival went public through a merger with a special-purpose acquisition company, CIIG Merger Corp.[2] In February 2024, after getting its stock delisted from the Nasdaq, Arrival's UK division entered administration, with future plans of a sale of Arrival and all of its affiliated assets.[11]

He is also the founder of Roborace – the world's first driverless electric racing platform.[12]

Achievements

In 2009, under the leadership of Denis Sverdlov, Yota reached operational profitability within the first five months of commercial operations.[13]

In 2011, Sverdlov was included in the Global Telecoms Business magazine's ranking of the most successful young entrepreneurs.[14]

In 2021, Denis Sverdlov's company Arrival was valued at approximately $13.6–13.8 billion during its stock market debut, making it the largest listing in the history of British startups.[15]

Personal life

Sverdlov is married, with three children, and the family moved from France to London in September 2015.[2][16]