From former Chancellor Alfred Gusenbauer to former Bank Austria boss Karl Sonntag: who earned hefty compensation before the Signa Group collapsed. And when the last official meeting of the advisory board took place in the company of financial juggler René Benko.
Anyone following the trail of money in the complicated Signa empire will come across a remarkable number of questionable deals that took place shortly before the great collapse began. Because René Benko – as reported by the Crown – not only ensured that his Liechtenstein Foundation came into possession of six luxury homes on Lake Garda in August 2023, but also allowed his immediate environment to benefit from high benefits. The financial juggler’s complicated Signa Group conglomerate was already suffering from massive liquidity bottlenecks in 2023 – long before the crash.
High salary for Gusenbauer
One of the possible beneficiaries is Alfred Gusenbauer, who was highly valued and paid at Benko from 2009 onwards. The former chancellor collected around two million euros in consultancy fees in the year before Signa Holding alone went bankrupt, half a million of which in September 2023, just a few weeks before the first bankruptcy. In addition, according to research by ‘Krone’ and ‘News’, the former SPÖ federation chairman earned just over 500,000 euros for his work as a member of the advisory board in 2023.
Last advisory board meeting in 2020
The proud compensation for Gusenbauer’s advisory board work again begs the question: where were the achievements? The advisory board of Signa Holding in the universe of sole ruler Benko apparently no longer officially met from 2021 onwards. Nevertheless, Gusenbauer’s old colleague Karl Saturday on the advisory board also did well business-wise: The former boss of Bank Austria also received over a million euros in consultancy fees through a company.
Trustees and authorities will soon have to provide clarity as to when the Signa Group actually became insolvent. And whether certain payments could have been made to the detriment of the many creditors. The focus of the revaluation will have to be on the issue of actual management: according to a wealth of available documents, René Benko may have exercised significant influence over the years on the management of the group, although according to the companies register he does not hold any official position in the entire Signa Group since 2013.
Shifts to the Laura vibe
Shifts in the double to triple digits were probably not uncommon in Benko’s shady business empire: according to research, just over 50 million could have flowed from the Signa Group to Benko’s Laura Private Foundation. In addition, almost 200 million euros will go to a Laura Holding and more than 120 million to a Laura Finance Holding. If Benko had actually been the de facto director in his Signa construction, he could have been held personally responsible for countless questionable transactions.
Source: Krone
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
