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bne May 2017 Cover story I 37
BULGARIA
children and extended family, Karic suc- cessfully presented himself as a down- to-earth family man, becoming hugely popular among poorer, rural Serbs. Originally from the Kosovan town of Peja, he sometimes speaks Serbian ungram- matically. While they were still living in Kosovo, which became independent from Serbia in 2008, Karic and his brothers made money as wedding singers. Even today he often plays the guitar while his wife Milanka sings with him.
After the 2004 election, Dinkic and oth- er government officials doubled down on Karic. Mobtel was stripped of its licence in 2005 over accusations it had helped a supporter of the Kosovo Lib- eration Army. Accusations of abuse of office and tax evasion were also levelled against Karic and his company, which was the subject of raids by armed police.
Karic left Serbia for Moscow in 2006,
a move that was to last for a decade. During his absence, several indict- ments were made against him, although nothing has been proven in court.
Ten years later, when the statute of limi- tations against him had finally expired, Karic landed in Belgrade on December 30, 2016 as a free man with an estimated net wealth of $750mn. Numerous mem- bers of his family as well as ordinary citizens waited for him at the airport.
Karic’s return opened speculation he was planning to run for the presidency, but instead he actively supported Vucic’s campaign. He is now one of
the possible candidates to succeed Vucic as prime minister, alongside several senior members of the ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS). PSS is now part of the SNS-led coalition.
In terms of his business activities, BK TV, which was closed in 2006, now operates as an internet channel but Karic has bought a licence for cable channel Nova TV and is now waiting
for national coverage. He says he wants to build something positioned between Russia Today and the BBC. Karic is also promising to build Tesla grad, an afford- able new settlement near Belgrade.
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Kiril Domuschiev
$670mn
Shipping, animal health
Domuschiev (48) controls investment holding firm Advance Properties alongside his brother Georgi. The firm’s main assets are animal health company Huvepharma and shipping company Navibulgar. Domuschiev is an avid football fan who invested in bankrupt third divi- sion team Ludogorets Razgrad and took it all the way to the UEFA Champions League.
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$595mn Energy
Hristo Kovachki
Hristo Kovachki (54) controls 16 energy compa- nies, six collieries, six district heating compa- nies and three thermal power plants, acquired mainly through debt-financed privatisation.
He is married to pop folk singer and reality TV contestant Desislava.
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$200mn Finance
Tzvetelina Borislavova
Tzvetelina Borislavova (58) built her fortune with private investment company Clever Synergies Investment Fund, which she founded in 2005, and she has been a majority shareholder of the Bulgarian-American Credit Bank (BACB) since 2011. She is also the ex-girlfriend of Prime Min- ister Boyko Borissov, with whom she remains on very friendly terms.
CROATIA
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$645mn Retail
Ivica Todoric
Ivica Todoric (66) could lose his status as Croatia’s richest man after a financial crisis at his main asset Agrokor. Todoric used debt finance to grow his empire from a small flower business in the 1970s to a regional food and retail giant, though he continued to run it as a private company from his family’s base at Kulmer Castle in Zagreb.
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$160mn Retail
Emil Tedeschi
Emil Tedeschi (50) started out distributing Wrig- ley’s chewing gum in war-torn Croatia in 1991. Atlantic Grupa is now a regional giant with a presence across the SEE region.
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$95mn Tobacco
Ante Vlahovic
Reclusive businessman Ante Vlahovic (66) started his career as an economist at the Rovinj Tobacco Factory, working his way up to become CEO of its parent company Adris Group. He be- came a shareholder following the 1994 privati- sation and is now worth around €89mn.
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$60mn
Oil trading
Enver Moralic
A descendent of a noble Bosnian family that had fallen on hard times, 82-year-old Enver Moralic’s successful oil trading business has made him one of Croatia’s richest businessmen with interests as far afield as Canada and Kazakhstan. He lives at the 18th century Štakorovec manor in Croatia, where he indulges his passions for wine and horseriding.
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