The conflict between Credit Suisse and Georgian billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili is flaring up again. It emerged the bank recently made substantial payments to its former client, who is engaged in lawsuits with the bank.
Multibillion-dollar claims for damages brought by Georgian ex-prime minister Bidzina Ivanishvili against Credit Suisse subsidiaries in Bermuda and Singapore have been playing out in the background in recent weeks. Ivanishvili is now breaking his silence through the «CS Victims» association, of which he is the most prominent element, making new accusations against Credit Suisse on Wednesday. The bank is taking politically motivated measures against him and withholding funds due to him, he claims.
Funds Still With Credit Suisse
Credit Suisse declined to comment to finews.com when asked about the matter. Under newly appointed chief counsel Markus Diethelm it is making efforts to move deadlocked forward and seeking agreements with opposing parties. The aim is the restructuring the bank is undergoing is not hampered by legacy legal cases. The strategy being applied in the Ivanishvili case and, as it is stated in the CS Victims notice, the bank initiated negotiations with the lead plaintiff.
Now Ivanishvili describes the concession as illusory and is going public to increase the pressure on the bank.
Money is once again at stake. Astonishing as it may seem, Credit Suisse subsidiaries still manage some assets of the Georgian billionaire. While the exact amount is not mentioned, the money is not affected by the fraud of ex-Credit Suisse banker Patrice Lescaudron and remained in Credit Suisse bank deposits.
The Ukraine War
Starting in 2011, Lescaudron diverted millions of assets under his care to wealthy clients, including Ivanishvili. Lescaudron was summarily dismissed from Credit Suisse in 2015 and sentenced to prison for fraud in Geneva in 2018. In 2020, Lescaudron took his own life. The bank insisted in all of its related lawsuits he was a lone wolf not supported by other bank employees.
However, not all of Lescaudron's funds fell victim. A large part of Invanishvili's saved assets was later transferred to another Swiss bank while 5 percent remained with Credit Suisse due to legal conditions related to the claims for damages. Specifically, these funds are managed in Credit Suisse trust structures on the Channel Island of Guernsey and Singapore.
Credit Suisse victims now accuse the bank of having restricted Ivanishvili's access to these assets since the start of the Ukraine war just under a year ago which is seen by the victims' association as an indirect sanction.
The Singapore court
The EU Parliament recommended in December that sanctions be imposed on Ivanishvili related to alleged business ties with Russia. However, this recommendation was not implemented in the EU to date. Ukraine has also advocated sanctions against the Georgian.
However, there has still been one significant payout by Credit Suisse to Ivanishvili. Last fall, a Singapore court had to judge a claim for damages brought by the billionaire against a trust subsidiary of the bank and asked Credit Suisse to transfer funds to the ex-client not affected by the proceedings. The bank complied with the request, possibly also to show good faith.
Hot Again
In December, it transferred a large part of the sum a Geneva criminal court had awarded Ivanishvili in 2018 in the Lescaudron case. Credit Suisse paid interest that has since accrued on those assets but seems not to have been able to appease the plaintiff. According to the statement, he now wants not only to make public new internal details from the proceedings but also to show publicly how the management of Credit Suisse has damaged the reputation of the bank and Switzerland.
The dispute between the ex-client and Credit Suisse is again entering a hot phase. It is expected that a verdict will be reached in Singapore before the end of the first quarter. In the Bermuda case, the court of appeals is expected to issue a written verdict in the first half of the year.
