More than a year after the Indonesian government had seized the yacht of the mastermind behind the 1MDB scandal, the boat has now been sold.
Equanimity, the superyacht that belonged to Jho Low, has been sold, «Bloomberg» reported. The buyer of the 300-foot ship is a casino operator called Genting Malaysia.
A court in Malaysia approved the sale of the yacht for $126 million, slightly below the valuation of $130 million. The official valuation was still way lower than an original price tag of $250 million attached at the time when it was seized by the government.
Open Legal Status
One of the reasons why the sale was delayed for such a lengthy period of time may be unresolved legal issues. It is unclear whether the U.S. might want to seize the boat if it ventured into U.S. territorial waters. Low is still at large and the U.S. wants to arrest him.
The legal uncertainty may have pushed the price lower. Genting, which is part of a business conglomerate, wants to use the yacht for its premium clients.
Ongoing Investigations
Apart from the sale of the boat, several legal actions have yet to be closed. In Malaysia for instance, the new government still tries to recover as much as possible from the $4.5 billion embezzled in connection with the 1MDB state fund.
In the U.S. meanwhile, former Goldman Sachs banker Tim Leissner pleaded guilty and will be sentenced in June. Malaysia want his former employer to pay back $600 million.
Last but not least, in Switzerland, two ex-board members of Falcon Private Bank have yet to respond to allegations raised by a U.S. investigation.
