Eduard Volodymyrovych Shifrin (alternative spelling: Shyfrin) (Ukrainian:Едуа́рд Володи́мирович Шифрі́н;Russian:Эдуа́рд Влади́мирович Шифри́н; born 12 July 1960) is a Ukrainian entrepreneur who is a co-owner of theMidland Group. He is a resident inLondon.[1]
Shifrin was born inDnipropetrovsk,Soviet Ukraine, the son ofmetallurgy professor Vladimir Moiseyevich Shifrin.[1] In 1976–7 he came first in the National Ukrainian Physics Olympiad. From 1977–1983, he attended theMoscow Institute of Steel and Alloys, becoming a metallurgical engineer. He later returned to school and obtained a PhD in metallurgy in 1992.[2]
From 1983 to 1993, Shifrin worked inZaporizhia at the steel companyDniprospecstal, rising from assistant foreman to manager of the steel plant and then head of marketing.[1][2] He then rose to prominence as abusiness oligarch in newly independent Ukraine, taking control of privatized steelmakerZaporizhstal. He co-founded, withAlexander Shnaider,Midland Group, a holding company headquartered inGuernsey that embraces interests in steel (including Zaporizhstal, Ukraine's fourth largest steel mill), shipping, real estate, agriculture and sports. Together they own a share inThe St. Regis Toronto and formerly ownedMaccabi Tel Aviv and aFormula One team,Midland F1 Racing.[3]
In the 2006 edition of theSunday Times Rich List, Shifrin was listed at no. 59 with an estimated wealth of £920 million.[4] InForbes magazine's ranking of "The World's Billionaires" in 2009, Shifrin was ranked 559th with an estimated fortune of $1.3 billion.[5] In 2013,Focus magazine estimated his net worth at $893.3 million, making him the No. 20 richest person in Ukraine.[1] In 2008, the global economic crisis hit the group's assets, and the group began selling off its real estate and Russian and Ukrainian steel assets. In 2010, it sells the company's main asset, Zaporizhstal Steel Works, and all related assets..[6] After that, the division of assets between Shifrin and Shnaider began, which was finally completed in 2017 after the business co-owners concluded the trial by signing a settlement agreement.[7] As a result of the division, Shifrin acquires several Moscow properties, which he completes and sells, and then finally leaves Russia in 2020.By 2022 all his businesses in former-Soviet countries were closed.
In 2006, together with his late father, Shifrin published a book titledThe Theory of Metallurgical Processes for which he was awarded the State Prize of Ukraine.
In 2018 Shifrin's bookFrom Infinity to Man: The Fundamental Ideas of Kabbalah Within the Framework of Information Theory and Quantum Physics was published in Russian, with an English edition being released in 2019.[8]
In 2019, his children's bookTravels with Sushi in the Land of the Mind was published in English.[9] In 2020 it was named a Distinguished Favorite by the Independent Press Award for Juvenile Fiction.[10]
He is a sponsor ofJewish Book Week.[11]
He regularly writes articles about the Kabbalah of Information for the Jerusalem Post.[12]
In 2022/23 Shyfrin wrote 12 jazz-rock-blues compositions (music and lyrics) and recorded them in Paris within the frame of the project Shyfrin Alliance. They are united in the Upside down Blues Album. Shyfrin sings himself 9 compositions.[13] Three singles, Whiskey Blues, The Cage, and Unconditional, have been released on Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music and US and UK radios, the videos were released on the YouTube, Facebook, Tic Tok.[14][15]
In 2003 he financed the reconstruction of the oldest synagogue inKyiv and Jewish educational center dedicated to his late father.[16] He also co-sponsored the construction of synagogues in Moscow, Volgograd, and Zaporozhye.[2] He sponsors over 60 Chabad educational classes for children. He served as regional vice-president of theWorld Jewish Congress.[2][17]
Following the outbreak of full-scalehostilities between Russia and Ukraine in 2022, Shifrin decried armed conflict[18] and submitted a request to the Russian embassy in London in which he strongly condemned the aggression against Ukraine[19] and requested the renunciation of his Russian citizenship.[20] He and other family members donated to Ukrainian organizations supporting people within and near warzones[21] including the UK-basedWorld Jewish Relief.[22] Put on the wanted list by the Russian authorities without any warning[23] In 2023, he was awarded the Cross of Freedom medal of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine for his work for Ukraine..[24]
Shifrin and his wife live inLondon with their three children.[4]
What is easy to get into, but hard to get out of? My answer is Russian citizenship. In 2020 I left Russia because of the harassment by "siloviki". After 24/02/22 I tried to understand the procedure of renunciation of the Russian citizenship. In the beginning of May, 2022, I sent a letter to the embassy of Russian Federation in UK in which I expressed my protest against the aggression against Ukraine and renounced down my and my daughter's citizenship.
