Three years after Nacional was the first in Croatia to publish a list of the wealthiest Croats, the assets of the leading Croatian capitalists has shown that, for the most part, the successfully resisted last year’s agony on the world capital market and increased political instability due to the battle of world leaders against terrorism. The recovery of the world markets has significantly stabilized the assets of certain Croatian rich people, making it easier for experts assisting Nacional to assess their worth. However, several industrial branches showed poor results last year. This primarily was seen in the dairy industry, which was shaken by great scandals. While the bankruptcy of Parmalat in Italy shook up the economic and political establishment in that country, dairy industry problems in Croatia, in addition to his questionable investments, have reduced the fortune of Luka Rajić. The owner of Lura has lost over 5 million Euro. This would not have endangered his position on the ranking list had Todorić and Vlahović not significantly increased their assets. Some domestics capitalists significantly increased the value of their portfolio due to the large increase in the value of real estate in certain parts of Croatia, where many wisely invested. For some, this rise in the value of real estate only acted to balance out losses due to other factors. Though it is still very difficult to assess wealth in Croatia, it has been noted that there is a small increase in those whose fortunes can be assessed on the basis of their transparent activities. Though he operates within a monopoly he succeeded in maintaining due to his political ties, it was transparent operations and going public with the Rovinj Tobacco Factory that brought Ante Vlahović to the second position on the list and made he and his associates very wealthy. Vlahović has more than doubled his fortune, from 110 million Euro last year to 260 million this year. With individual fortunes of 72 million Euro, TDR stockholders Plinio Cuccurin and Branko Zec also entered onto the list of the most wealthy Croats.

After being off the list for a long time, Miroslav Kutle is back. The court cases against him are slowly winding down, and some of his secret partners, also on the list, are slowly being to pay him their dues. Their media battles last year caused quite a stir. Three politicians are also included on this list. Ivić Pašalić, from the category of washed up politicians is on the list due to his fortune gained through secret partnerships with the victims mentioned above. With 18 million Euro, Pašalić is the 37th richest Croat. Significantly wealthier is opposition politician from HNS, Radimir Cačić, who is in 17th place with 45 million Euro. Near the bottom of the list is Foreign Minister Miomir Žužul with 9 million Euro, who seriously cashed in on his connections in Washington. He even bought three houses in the wealthiest neighbourhood of the American capital.

1. (3) Ivica Todorić – 270 million Euro

Owner of Agrokor, and a man of endless energy, last year brought him the leading position among the wealthiest Croats. His fortune was significantly increased due to the solid results of Jamnica and Ledo and due to the increase in value of his corporate bonds. A part of his management believes that Ledo and Zvijezda factories are each worth about 100 million Euro. Not so long ago, Todorić’s corporate bonds has a weak rating. Today that has changed, which is likely the strongest indicator of overall growth of value of his Agrokor. Last year’s increased show just how good a decision it was to end cooperation with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, which banned him from new investments in Konzum. With the purchase of the Serbian ice cream and frozen food factory Frikom, Todorić made a big step into the region, which was not at all shaken by the unstable political situation in Serbia and Montenegro following last year’s assassination of Premier Zoran Djindjić.

2. (4) Ante Vlahović – 260 million Euro
President of the Board of the Adris Group, which arose due to diversification of operations of the Rovinj Tobacco Factory. With his clever ties to politics, he succeeded in preserving the monopoly for his factory for an entire decade. Perfectly acquainted with political opportunity, a skilled financial and marketing expert, he turned his associates and fellow TDR shareholders into millionaires by going public, in addition to doubling his own fortune. TDR alone is now worth over a billion euro. There are some estimates that Vlahović has over 25% of shares in his hands. Though he has many enemies, he must be commended for increasing his fortune tenfold following privatization. To date, he has not permitted the payment of dividends, instead, he has redirected all profits into diversification and expansion of production. It would appear that the board has decided to get rid of the tobacco segment, but in so doing they have set extremely strict terms for Philip Morris and BAT, tobacco giants seriously interested in buying out the factory. If they want to buy TDR, they have to close down their recently purchased factories in Serbia. Vlahović sees the future of his company in tourism and the food industry. By results to date, he will succeed.

3. (2) Enver Moralić – 200 million Euro
Last year, Moralić had numerous problems, but he succeeded in buying the wine producer PPK Kutjevo. Some claim that this acquisition was the first step in the creation of a powerful, regional food company. He earned the majority of his fortune in the petrochemical industry. He is owner of the Kemoplex company in Frankfurt, which has annual turnover of over a billion dollars on the oil market. Last year, that company’s operations were stable. Since the mid 1980s, Moralić has made many investments in the production and procession of oil and natural gas in Russia. He is close to Russia’s Lukoil. He is owner of the Štakorovec Castle near Sv. Ivan Zelina and the Vile Račić in Cavtat, and several large plots of land intended for the construction of tourism complexes. He is patient and strategically and wisely runs his companies.

4. (1) Luka Rajić – 195 million Euro
For the fourth year in a row, the Croatian dairy king is among the top five wealthiest Croats. However, since last year, his fortune has decreased by 5 million Euro. There are several reasons for this. The dairy industry has been seeing lower profits than in previous years. The purchase of the confectioner’s factory Sloboda did not bring the expected results. Rajić has expanded his operations to Switzerland, where he bought the Favarger chocolate factory. Those well acquainted with his business believe that Rajić should get more involved in running the business, even though experts believe that Željko Perić, whom Rajić appointed as director, is a perfect manager. Nonetheless, he lacks Rajić’s energy.

5. (3) Pavo Zubak – 74 million Euro
Last year, Pavo Zubak showed his entrepreneurial maturity and withdrew from the managing position of his company Auto Zubak, instead taking on the role of president of the supervisory board. He also celebrated his 25th anniversary in the business and announced the coming of a new age for his company, appointing 32 year old Tomislav Radoš as his successor. He united his five companies which sell, service and offer all other auto services. He continued to expand his operations, once again confirming how he unnecessarily participated in the affair surrounding Večernji List. His fortune grows continually through the successful company PZ Auto, which is the main distributor for Volkswagen, Audi, Škoda, Seat and Porsche. Zubak is 50% owner of that company. This year, he decided to leave the hotel business by selling off his hotel in Umag.

6. (9) Žarko Kraljević – 73 million Euro
The owner of the regional Diners for Croatia, Serbia, BiH, Macedonia, Montenegro, Bulgaria, Romania and Russia increased his fortune by 23 million Euro over last year. The main reason for such excellent results was an successful transaction: the trade of shares in Generalturist and Budget rent-a-car for Diners shares. Thanks to good organization and marketing, the Diners revenues continue to climb. Zagrebačka Bank is his reliable partner.

7. (-) Plinio Cuccurin – 72 million Euro
As of 1 January 2004, he became director of the tobacco division within the Adris Group, and is in fact director of TDR. A skilled lawyer and one of Ante Vlahović’s closest associates, he is responsible for the fact that TDR is becoming a regional giant. Like Vlahović, virtually his entire fortune is in stocks, as TDR has been very stingy in paying out dividends. Their policy is that all profit be reinvested in the company, thus increasing the company’s overall worth.

8. (-) Branko Zec – 72 million Euro
If Plinio Cuccurin is Ante Vlahović’s right hand, then Zec is his left hand. One of the best financial experts in the country, he plays a large role in the explosive expansion and growth of the TDR stock. Like the remaining TDR shareholders, he also has no money, but all his fortune is in stock.

9. (6) Dragutin Drk – 70 million Euro
The “mother and father” of the dairy industry, Vindija, had stable operations last year, with a partial expansion of the product line and improvements in product quality. Drk is most helped in the business by his daughter who runs marketing. The drops in stock value and dairy industry problems in the world last year decreased his fortune by an addition million Euro, and by four million over two years. Experts expect continued decentralization of the management in the company, which according to some estimates, together with the addition of some top managers, would significantly strengthen the company.

10. (15) Ivan Ergović – 60 million Euro
The owner of Našicacement has significantly increased the value of his cement, concrete, brick and building material factory thanks to his hard work and abilities. This will continue to be the most demanded goods in the war-torn region and in this country which is intensively building road infrastructure. He has also made successful steps to enter onto the Serbian and Montenegrin markets.

11. (12) Toni Kukoč – 57 million Euro
The value of his fortune increases with the value of his annual NBA salary. He continues to lose a part of his fortune due to the weak exchange of the dollar against the Euro, which is now at 23%. However, he has almost reached the 60 million Euro level, which was his estimated fortune two years ago.

12. (13) Anđelko Leko – 55 million Euro
Director and co-owner of HUP, a hotel company which includes a series of the most elite Zagreb hotels such as Opera, Sheraton, Panoramo, International and Palace. Clever Leko has increased the value of his fortune due to the significant increase in real estate prices in Zagreb. All his Zagreb hotels are operating in the black. He has immense working energy and swims well in all political waters, from Bandić to Mesić.

13. (7) Zvonko Zubak – 54 million Euro
He recently announced that he would leave Croatia and move to Canada, after mysteriously receiving Canadian citizenship several years ago along with several other arms trader associates who were involved in the international smuggling of arms in the late 1990s. He plans to invest in an auto parts factory there. Most of his business ambitions failed in Croatia. Račan’s government was quick to reject his offer to buy INA and even though he announced he would, he did not participate in the battle for the third national TV station. His political campaign was a complete failure, which resulted in a debacle in November 2003. After last year’s 11 million Euro drop in his fortune, he lost another 5 this year. He has not succeeded in collecting on the $200 million debt from the government for obtaining the S-300 rocket system. The outcome of that lawsuit is still uncertain. He will likely try to rent out his massive home near Sesvete, totaling 2700 square metres.

14. (8) Emil Tedeschi – 50 million Euro
After virtually doubling his fortune last year by taking over Cedevita and Neva, bringing his company’s revenues up to 120 million Euro, this year, his fortune was reduced by 5 million Euro due to an increased debt level in the company. Atlantic Trade continues to operate stably. This stability could further be strengthened once the broadcasting of the second private TV concession holder RTL begins, as Atlantic Trade is part of the ownership concern.

15. (12) Marijan Filipović – 48 million Euro
Owner of the wood giant Fininvest from Čabra in Gorski Kotar and is the strongest businessman in the timber and wood processing industry in the entire region. He works out of the country, far from the public eye and, with the help of his son, is the largest concession holder of forest lands in Croatia and BiH. Neither he nor his son are a part of public life or the jet set, even though Filipovic drives a helicopter and his son drives a Ferrari.

16. (10) Dubravko Grgić 47 million Euro
Majority owner of the Agram Insurance Holding, which is owner of Euroherc Insurance, Jadransko Insurance and Mediteransko Insurance. Though operations are stable, he lost quite a bit on the market when INA cancelled the tender which his company won. Speculations on manipulations in winning the tender damaged the company. With that, there are minority shareholders who have threatened to sue over their shares.

17. (-) Radimir Čačić – 45 million Euro
This former minister increased his fortune while sitting in Račan’s cabinet. His central company Coning, with its daughter companies and Aurum Insurance significantly increased their worth. Čačić’s critics claims that this is due to successful participation in highway building jobs. He can also thank his wife for the increase in value, as she took care of the majority of the business while he was in politics.

18 (16) Dragutin Biondić – 43 million Euro
Though these have been difficult times for the textile industry, Biondić Jr. increased the value of his fortune by 3 million Euro, thanks primarily to the domestic company Heruc. Very cautious with money in operations, he has already demanded media attention for his upcoming fashion show scheduled for 7 April in Zagreb. The new Heruc line will be presented by the world modeling elite, led by Karlolina Kurkova and Marcus Schenkenberg. Investing in top quality promotions could lead to new increased next year. He has begun building his family home in the most elite neighbourhood in Zagreb.

19. (11) Goran Ivanišević – 42 million Euro
He continues to lose part of his fortune due to poor business investments in Croatia. Though he recently returned to active tennis, he is still far from achieving significant tournament winnings, as well as new revenues through advertisements and sponsorships. He does not pay tax in Croatia, but in Monte Carlo. The losses in the value of his assets have been compensated by increasing values of his real estate he invested in earlier.

20. (16) Goranko & Biserka Fižulić – 41 million Euro
The “owners” of half of Ilica Street, where they purchased or rented out shops in the best places in town. Their business blossomed while Fižulić was Economy Minister, and his wife Biserka, called the dragon lady, ran the business. Over the last two years, their fortune has increased by 11 million Euro, 5 million last year alone.

21. (19) Zdravko Pevec – 35 million Euro
The Bjelovar businessman increased his fortune by 5.5 million Euro last year, showing that his business empire is operating stably, with a slight increasing trend in revenues. Since 1990, he has built up the largest shopping chain in Croatia for the sale of building materials and home supplies, while the product line has expanded to include household appliances, audio and video equipment, school supplies and toys. Half of his success is due to his wife Višnja, who has been working alongside him since day one.

22 (18). Josip Kordić – 34 million Euro
After the City of Zagreb granted him a building permit for a highrise on Vukovar Street, the value of the portfolio of Hidrocommerce increased. He began as a bricklayer in Turopolje, to later become a building parter to Hrvoje Petrač and now Zdravko Mamić. Though he does not like to show off his wealth, it is known that he owns several massive and valuable homes both on the coast and in the interior. His family home in Zagreb with its large surrounding vineyard are worth a true fortune. He is quickly buying up land in Buzin and towards Velika Gorica and is preparing to begin large construction projects, like the one he once had with Mercatone in Lučko.

23. (21) Stipe Gabrić Jambo – 33 million Euro
Owner of Razvitak from Metković, a shopping centre and a series of hotels along the coast, he increased his fortune by 4 million Euro last year. That was primarily due to the increase in real estate prices in Dalmatia, and not due to his business talents. The return of HDZ to power, with Luka Bebić, could harm him. However, since he is a man of compromise, he will quickly come to a deal with the new rules. He sponsors that Jambo Handball Club.

24. (23) Željko Kerum – 31 million Euro
This Split businessman earned an additional 5.5 million Euro last year. His business expansion and growing fortune are due to the announcement of uniting the remaining small trade chains into NTL (National Trade Chain), which is counting on taking over 10-12% of the market. He has regretted buying the first Maybach in Croatia, which he confesses has caused him business problems. Kerum opened his first store in 1989 in his family home when he was left without work in a construction company.

25. (25) Robert Ježić – 30 million Euro
He wisely invested in line with world trends, which increased his fortune by 6 million Euro. He tried to obtain additional social affirmation by being president of the Rijeka Football Club. Co-owner of Landmark and the mysterious Forus, this Rijeka businessman met the business elite as a skipper on a sailboat, and got rich by trading polymers throughout Europe. He could soon become the king of polymers in Croatia. His biggest problems is the departure of his protector Slavko Linić into the opposition. He drives a Ferrari and Mercedes and lives for most of the year in Zugg, Switzerland.

26. (26) Mirko Grbešić – 28 million Euro
The value of his fortune was increased by 5 million Euro, as his strategic interests in Saponija from Osijek increased. He owns Mepas, a company which has grown and operates well in Herzegovina, where he is one of the main sports patrons.

27. (28) Branko Roglić – 26 million Euro
His fortune grew by a new 4 million Euro over last year. He operated well and invested wisely in real estate. He successfully pulled out of the Slobodna Dalmacija project. He is owner of the battery factory Croatia and the company Laura, which distributes the most famous brands of perfume, he represents the multinational company Proctor&Gamble for Croatia, BiH and Slovenia. He is also owner of the company Orvas in Split. He continues to avoid the public eye and lives quietly.

28. (30) Braco Radovanović – 25 million Euro
Owner of Euroline, general distributor of DaimlerChrysler for Croatia and BiH, he earned an additional 4.5 million Euro last year. Despite several problems with disgruntled Mercedes owners who complained about frequent breakdowns and attracted negative publicity, he did not lose his strong market position. He showed his strength when he succeeded in taking away the license overnight to sell Mercedes vehicles from Baotić Auto House.

29. (24) Darko Ostoja – 25 million Euro
The value of his fortune has remained at the same level as last year. He successfully fended off all of the nervous attacks by former government vice-president Slavko Linić. With the change in government, he has further strengthened his position.

30. (32) Franjo Tomić – 24 million Euro
Owner of Tomić & Co., general distributor for BMW and Land Rover for Croatia and BiH, he earned an additional 5 million Euro last year. It was a good business year for his company, which continues to increase sales and revenues every year. He also successfully runs a heating and cooling systems company in Munich.

31. (34) Hrvoje Petrač – 23.5 million Euro
Though he is currently in hot water over suspicions by the General Attorney’s office that he was involved in the kidnapping of General Zagorec’s son, Petrač has succeeded in significantly increasing his assets over the past year. By expanding his operations abroad and investing in winemaking and real estate, Petrač’s assets have grown. The most credit for successful operations in these difficult times is his wife Alica.

32. (29) Davor Štern – 23 million Euro
He increased his personal fortune by 9 million Euro due to good investments on the world markets. He is vice-president of the Russian oil giant TNK, former director of INA and has never cut his strong ties to Russia. Since HDZ has returned to power, he appears in public more frequently. Much of his fortune is in real estate.

33. (-) Vladimir Zagorec – 21 million Euro
It is assessed that he increased his fortune after going into retirement. He works independently as a consultant, and has several companies with foreign partners (Patfinger, Scorpio…), which deal with construction and foreign investments. He guaranteed his own loan at the bank for 1.5 million Euro to cover the ransom for his kidnapped son. He owns several valuable properties.

34. (22) Ninoslav Pavić – 20 million Euro
His fortune in EPH was reduced by 5 million Euro. A part of the profits had to be redirected to his secret partners from the Grupo media cartel. A part of the losses was compensated for by the increasing value of properties he invested in. His assets will continue to drop as he has yet to pay off his partners, with Miroslav Kutle seeking the most.

35. (34)Vladimir Smolec – 19.5 million Euro
He earned an additional 2.5 million Euro last year. One of the leading stockholders in the marketing agency Digitel, which continues to be the market leader. He and his wife have continued to make wise business decision. One of the main players in the sale of Nova TV. He has the largest marketing clients in Croatia – Croatian Telecom.

36. (31) Milan Artuković – 19 million Euro
He lost half a million Euro of his fortune due to the drop in the value of Franck shares on the domestic capital market. Despite the decreasing value of the company, he continues to hold the leading position on the domestic market. He is quiet and rarely communicates with the media.

37. (21) Ivić Pašalić – 18 million Euro
Despite his political marginalization, he remains among the wealthiest Croats. The value of his fortune has significantly decreased due to his waning influence. He will likely begin to invest in construction, where as his father in law has had a construction company for many years. It will be interesting to see whether he will invest personally or whether he will again hide behind various investment fronts.

38.(38) Davor Šuker – 17 million Euro
Former football star, well known for his thriftiness and the variety of businesses he dealt in while actively playing football, he invested his earned money well. He has several football academies and is also involved in management. He increased his fortune by 2 million Euro last year.

39.(33) Josip Gucić – 16 million Euro
He lost 2 million Euro, primarily due to attorney fees for the numerous cases against him for various illegalities over the past decade.

40. (-) Ivan Ćaleta – 15 million Euro
Owner of the GRP media company, his fortune was cut in half, even though his operations were very successful. Though he is bringing the negotiations on the sale of Nova TV to a close, which Ćaleta and his management team brought to a successful market position, he will receive only a small piece of the sale. Though he formally controls the majority share of the country’s first private TV station with a national concession, at the end of last year his secret partners sent him a very clear message that they want their part of the pie. He was shot in the knees in the centre of Zagreb while returning home from a massage. Since then, he has not appeared in the public eye.

41. (35) Zvonimir Boban – 14 million Euro
The top notch footballer graduated history this year. He has well invested the money he earned in Milan. His short-term goal is to become the president of the Croatian Football Association. Due to the drops in the capital markets last year, his fortune was reduced by 2 million Euro.

42. (-) Drago Kamenski – 13 million Euro
Owner of the building company Kamgrad. One of the most active contractors in the country, he has founded the perfectly organized company. He buys abandoned buildings, renovates them and them sells or rents them out. On the rise.

43. (39) Zdravko Mamić – 12 million Euro
The most powerful Croatian football manager. He has eighty players who are of great potential value, much greater than his current assets. There is one problem – the weak Croatian football league and many skeletons in his closet. Investments in property were wise and he was saved by the approved building permit for his business tower in Zagreb.

44. (-) Franjo Luković – 11 million Euro
According to estimates, president of the board of Zagrebačka Bank has great value in stocks of the company that he led to the very top of Croatian banking. This conservative banker is very well respected by his Italian employers.

45. (40) Hrvoje Vojvoda – 10 million Euro
The true ruler of Varaždin and surrounding areas, once a serious candidate to lead HDZ, he was not overly active in increasing the value of his portfolio last year. The return of HDZ to power should help his position.

46. (-) Tomislav Horvatinčić – 9.5 million Euro
Owner of the HoTo tower in Savska Street and a massive building in Hebrang Street, thanks to favourable contracts with HT on long-term leases, he has climbed to unforeseen heights in the value of his assets. These will only continue to increase over the coming years due to his smart investments. He has great support from Hypo Alpe Adria Bank in all his investments.

47. (-) Miomir Žužul – 9 million Euro
Four years outside of state administration were enough for the clever Foreign Minister to use his numerous political ties he made during his time as Ambassador in Washington. He used his Washington connections in lobbying, which is very highly paid in the US. He purchased a house in the best part of the US capital.

48. (37) Nikola Lisičar – 8 million Euro
Co-owner and director of Montmontaza, together with Ivica Nuić, did great business thanks to good ties with the former government, however, his fortune was reduced in the market race without political sponsorship. His reputation was damages by his involvement in the Večernji List affair. His fortune was reduced by 3 million Euro over last year.

49. (-) (Miroslav Kutle) – 7 million Euro
The old HDZ player rides again. The court cases against him are slowly winding down, his secret partners, including Ninoslav Pavić, are slowly paying him their dues. His fortune will sharply rise with the same of Nova TV – he should receive a big piece of the 28 million Euro pie.

50. (-) Reno Sinovčić – 6 million Euro
The king of Adriatic fish, former football referee with crucial influence in the Croatian Football Association, he used his lobbying and organizations capabilities well. He has still not recovered from the damage incurred when he rigged football games, otherwise his fortune would be much greater today. He is one of the largest investors in property in the Zadar region, which is still expecting to see an economic boom.