When Russians woke up on the morning on January 16, few knew the name Mikhail Vladimirovich Mishustin, the head of the country’s tax service. But by the time they went to bed that night, Mishustin had been named as Russia’s new prime minister and the second most powerful politician in the country amid reforms that could potentially extend Putin’s grip on power after his presidential term ends in 2024.
Born in Moscow in 1966, Mishustin’s career has been largely technocratic up until now. He started out work at an information technology non-profit but entered the state tax service as an assistant in 1998. He has worked in tax collection since then, has headed the Federal Tax Service since 2010. Mishustin is similar to his predecessor Medvedev in embracing technology and has been widely credited with digitalizing the Russian tax system. This led to a drop in tax evasion as well as bringing many smaller businesses into the formal economy. "Few people love tax specialists, but Mishustin managed to maintain a pretty decent reputation," said political scientist and professor at the Higher School of Economics Alexey Makarkin.
In 2008, he also served as the head of Russian investment company UFG, which at the time worked with Germany's Deutsche Bank. Despite his tax-focused career, Mishustin initially trained as an engineer, graduating from Moscow's STANKIN Machine-Instrument Institute (currently Moscow State Technological University STANKIN) in 1989. He has a PhD in economics, according to his official biography.
Just last year, Mishutin told the Kommersant newspaper that Russia needed to embrace artificial intelligence and digital technology, saying "if we don't understand how this world is developing and what its rules are, if we insist our country is part of the old order, this new world will make us its victim."
Like Putin, the newly-appointed prime minister a hockey fan and has been seen at matches with security services officials in Moscow. According to Bloomberg, Mishustin developed a relationship with Putin as a member of the president’s Night Hockey League, and he is also a member of the board of Russia’s Ice Hockey Federation. Mishustin is reportedly an enthusiastic pianist and composer who has written a number of songs for well-known Russian singers, according to the Russian financial newspaper Vedomosti.
Forbes Russia listed him as the 54th best-paid state official in 2015 with earnings of 183.31 million rubles (around $3 million; €2.7 million). His wife reported earnings of 47.709 million rubles in the reported period, according to Reuters news agency. His personal wealth appears relatively modest compared to his predecessor, who was repeatedly accused by opposition leader Alexei Navalny of graft.
