The proceeds of this auction will allow the authorities of Gibraltar to compensate the creditors of the oligarch.
The yacht of Russian oligarch Dimitri Pumpianski, targeted by Western sanctions, was sold for 37.5 million dollars by Gibraltar, where it had been seized in March, announced Tuesday the maritime judicial authority of this British enclave. This authority, called Admiralty Marshal, said in a statement that it would not reveal the name of the buyer. The proceeds from the auction will allow the Gibraltar authorities to compensate the oligarch’s creditors. A total of 63 buyout offers had been received during the yacht’s auction.
This boat, called Axioma, is a luxurious 72-meter yacht flying the Maltese flag. He had been seized in March by the authorities of this small British territory located in the extreme south of Spain after a complaint filed by the American bank JP Morgan. This bank had granted in December a loan of 20.5 million euros to a company registered in the British Virgin Islands, whose shareholder was a Cypriot company, itself owned by Dimitri Pumpianski.
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JP Morgan considered that the placement of the oligarch on the list of Russian personalities targeted by British sanctions constituted a breach of this loan agreement. The sanctions lead in particular to a freezing of the assets of the businessmen concerned, jeopardizing the repayment of debts. The bank had therefore appealed to the Gibraltar authorities to seize the yacht, which had been registered as one of the guarantees for the loan.
Boss of pipeline giant TMK, Dimitri Pumpianski is also targeted by EU sanctions imposed since the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Several countries, such as Spain, Italy and France, have seized yachts belonging to the wealthiest Russians under European sanctions that will freeze all their assets in the EU.
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