Swiss-based Russian oligarch Viktor Vekselberg is in hot water with U.S. sanctions and Swiss accounts. Now, he is hitting back.
Viktor Vekselberg, a Zug-based Russian oligarch estimated to be worth more than $14 billion, had to repay Swiss banks more than 700 million Swiss francs ($706 million) after being hit by U.S. sanctions. He has also seen roughly 2 billion francs worth of assets frozen in Swiss accounts, according to Swiss newspaper «Schweiz am Wochenende» (in German).
Now, Vekselberg is hitting back, deciding to pursue the banks with a civil case as well as a criminal complaint against the responsible people. His reasoning? The banks had no legal grounds for the asset block, since the funds were held in Swiss francs, not in U.S. dollars.
«The Swiss banks are in a clinch,» the newspaper quoted a person close to Renova, Vekselberg's investment vehicle, as saying.
Collateral Held
Vekselberg's private funds aren't the only thing that has been blocked: several Swiss banks including UBS and Credit Suisse denied him access to big equity stakes he snapped up in Switzerland. His stakes in Swiss industrial firms Sulzer, OC Oerlikon, and Schmolz+Bickenbach are still blocked by Credit Suisse.
The holdings are being held as collateral against two loans Vekselberg received from a group of western banks, including the two Swiss giants.
