Nurlan Smagulov at the Almaty Museum of Arts, the museum he financed.
Photographer: Daniyar Mussirov/BloombergBillionaires
Kazakhstan’s Latest Billionaire Started Out as a Car Salesman
Nurlan Smagulov started out selling Ladas when the USSR collapsed before riding the transformation of Kazakhstan’s economy.
When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, the city of Almaty moved at a quieter pace. Known for its wide boulevards, opera house and the world’s highest ice rink, cars were a luxury and Western goods were scarce.
Today, Almaty is the busy commercial hub of Kazakhstan’s booming economy, and if one man encapsulates the journey from communism to capitalist consumerism, it’s Nurlan Smagulov.