Europe’s richest man Bernard Arnault, 74, is facing a money laundering investigation in France over a “ski resort property deal” linked to Russian billionaire oligarch Nikolai Sarkisov
- French investigators have been intensifying their investigations against Russian investors since Putin’s invasion of Ukraine
French billionaire Bernard Arnault and Russian oligarch Nikolai Sarkisov are under investigation for alleged money laundering at a luxury resort in the Alps, according to Paris prosecutors.
The investigation concerns their activities in Courchevel, a ski resort in the French Alps known as a playground for the super-rich, it said late Thursday.
The French Economy Ministry’s financial investigation unit is leading the investigation but has yet to determine whether a crime was committed, a source familiar with the probe told AFP. It is understood they deny any wrongdoing.
French daily Le Monde, citing financial intelligence unit Tracfin, reported that the 55-year-old Russian billionaire bought 14 residential units from a single seller for 16 million euros (currently $17 million) in 2018 as part of a complex deal with local companies ) I purchased in France, Luxembourg and Cyprus.
Although he is believed to be the buyer, Sarkisov’s name does not appear anywhere in the books of the company making the purchase.
LVMH CEO Bernard Arnault and his wife Helene Mercier arrive at a state dinner honoring Britain’s King Charles III earlier this month. at the Palace of Versailles
The investigation concerns activities in Courchevel, a ski resort in the French Alps known as the playground of the super-rich
Bernard Arnault’s eldest child Delphine (pictured), 47, plays a key role in her father’s business
The company, called La Fleche, is said to have purchased three additional real estate units from a second company, also believed to be owned by Sarkisov.
By allegedly selling the property to a company he owned, the Russian was able to make a capital gain of 1.2 million euros, according to the newspaper.
Arnault, who runs the LVMH luxury empire and is the second richest person in the world after Elon Musk according to Forbes, is said to have loaned Sarkisov €18.3 million for the deal.
It is then assumed that he acquired La Fleche, effectively becoming the owner of the property portfolio.
Le Monde cited a Tracfin document that said the change in ownership may have been aimed at “hiding the precise origin of the funds as well as the identity of the ‘ultimate beneficiary,'” Le Monde quoted.
Investigators believe that Sarkisov earned two million euros from the operation. However, it was still unclear to them how much he paid for the loan.
Contacted by AFP, LVMH declined to comment.
However, Le Monde quoted a spokesman as saying the operation was “carried out in strict compliance with the law.”
The newspaper also quoted people close to Sarkisov as saying that the capital gain was “only a few hundred thousand euros” and that the Russian was not personally involved.
Le Monde said that according to “family lore,” Arnault had a special connection to Courchevel because he learned to ski there as a child and where he owned a mansion and a luxury hotel.
Hotel prices in the resort could reach tens of thousands of euros per night, the newspaper says.