MOSCOW, May 29 (RIA Novosti) – Billionaire Andrei Guryev, one of Russia's richest senators, stepped down on Wednesday, the latest in a string of resignations from parliament in the wake of new laws aimed at keeping business and politics apart.
The Federation Council, the country’s upper house of parliament, voted on Wednesday to relieve Guryev of his duties as a senator. Guryev, who represented the northern region of Murmansk, had previously submitted his resignation after over 11 years in the office.
“I resigned because I hold the office of PhosAgro board chairman,” Guryev said on Wednesday. Guryev and his family are controlling shareholders of PhosAgro, Russia’s biggest fertilizer producer.
Forbes estimated his wealth at $4 billion this year, ranking him number 28 on the list of Russia’s richest businessmen. He previously chaired the board of apatite concentrate producer Apatit.
Guryev is the seventh senator to quit this year following the Kremlin’s high profile anti-corruption drive, which also bans lawmakers from holding bank accounts abroad and owning foreign-issued securities.
