Claims worth billions – The trustee is targeting Benko and Co

Liechtenstein’s public prosecutor’s office isn’t the only authority hot on the heels of Austria’s most talented financial juggler. In Austria, Soko Signa was formed within the Federal Criminal Police Office, which acts on behalf of the Public Prosecution Service for Economic Affairs and Corruption. In Germany, the Munich Public Prosecutor’s Office has launched an investigation on suspicion of money laundering. And now the curator of Signa Holding is also hunting for real estate speculator René Benko and the sunken Signa treasures.

The actual administration
René Benko and his willing accomplices are apparently confronted with claims amounting to billions, according to research by ‘Krone’ and ‘News’ into Signa Holding’s curator Christof Stapf. In addition to the founder of Signa, two top managers with a long track record are also targeted: Manuel Pirolt, the financial director of the Signa Group. And Marcus ‘Signature August’ Mühlberger, who was not only on the board of Signa Holding for Benko, but also on the board of a private foundation.

One fact also seems to be beyond doubt for curator Stapf: René Benko was de facto director in the field of non-transparency. This is exactly why the Tyrolean is at the top of the Signa sin register.

Asset shifts and revaluations
What are the most serious allegations? Benko and Co. are said to have carried out asset transfers at the expense of the crumbling Signa Holding. These involve extensive transfers of millions between Signa Group companies, for which there should be no operational or economic justification, just as there is no operational or economic justification for a payment of approximately 50 million to Benko’s Laura Private Foundation.

Signa’s management is said to have overvalued the real estate assets of the Signa Group and thus embellished the actual financial situation for investors. This concerns donors who submit claims in the three-digit million class and feel cheated: for example, the Mubadala sovereign wealth fund (713 million euros). Or about the real estate company Madison International Reality (770 million), which is accused of being misled with incomplete figures when it came onto the market in 2019.

The Signa bosses are said to have continued to pay even after the bankruptcy occurred. This includes a transfer of approximately 150 million euros to an investment house. There are also guarantee obligations, for example to the Julius Baer bank, for more than 200 million. However, without having the necessary capital – that is the curator’s accusation.

Years of legal disputes
Given this extensive list of sins, Benko and colleagues must prepare for years of legal proceedings. If the allegations are true, the directors would be liable for billions lost from their private assets.

René Benko has already fled his own personal bankruptcy at the Innsbruck Regional Court. After the final crash of Signa Holding as a result of the bankruptcy announced on Wednesday, it can be assumed that the curator also wants to take off the last shirt of the helpers in the management.

Collaborations with media groups
Meanwhile, details of the claims of at least one creditor also leaked in connection with the holding company’s crash. According to the long list – as reported – several banks (including the Swiss Julius Baer Bank), Siemens AG, the Innsbruck tax office and the Innsbruck district administration, Wiener Linien and Mediengruppe Österreich GmbH are likely to file claims against the debtor. As the “Krone” learned, the media group is said to have registered claims for a total amount of 504,000 euros. In concrete terms, this concerns two invoices for collaborations of 252,000 euros each. It is not clear whether the claim was also recognized.