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Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.
Life doesn’t always offer second chances, but if you really want to own a toilet brush owned by René Benko then you’re in luck.
FT Alphaville has been keeping a close eye on the ongoing Signa fire sale, as efforts continue to claw back money owed by the Austrian’s collapsed real estate empire.
Next up for auction are the furnishings of Signa’s Lake Garda property, Villa Ansaldi — situated in a 12-hectare park with a helipad and direct access to the lake. The Sirmione property was often used by Benko, including for his 40th birthday party — its guestbook includes entries. from Silvio Berlusconi, Niki Lauda and Tina Turner:
Bidding is already open on 1,845 items, and will run until July 14. If you’d like to register for a visit, the form is here.
Here’s what you could soon own:
With 18 bids, this 20th anniversary edition Signa Monopoly set from 2020 seems to be one of the hottest items in the sale. Readers may recognise many of the buildings depicted, including New York’s Chrysler Building, a stake in which Signa was forced to sell, Berlin’s KaDeWe, a stake in which Signa was forced to sell, and Hamburg’s Elbtower, a stake in which Signa was forced to sell. (Current bid: €100)
If that’s all too in-your-face, a 15th anniversary set, from 2014, is also available. Why there were six years between the 15th and 20th anniversaries, we’re unsure. Still, it’s hardly the biggest miscalculation Signa ever made. (Current bid: €110)
Time may have run out for Benko as Italian criminal prosecutors circle, but there are still several months of usage to get out of this 2025 wall calendar. (Current bid: €0)
Although it’s unlikely to be of much practical use to anyone whose surname is not Benko, this 12cm x 12cm “Familie Benko” plaque is at least a conversation starter. (Current bid: €90)
Life’s presumably a bit stressful for Familie Benko at the moment, so it’s a shame that they’re to be parted from a CD collection that includes the best of Enya and this Total Chillout disc. (Current bid: €0)
This six-foot-high (including plinth) metal sculpture of… Demeter? Ceres?… is the perfect demure addition to any property. (Current bid: €200)
Benko, MainFT reports, is accused of “shifting cash and assets worth tens of millions of euros out of creditors’ reach”, partially by moving them into foundations.
As Der Spiegel reported last year:
[The] foundations – the Laura private foundation in Austria, the Ingbe Foundation and the Arual Foundation in Liechtenstein – are suspected to have lavish assets: real estate in Austria and eastern Germany, the sophisticated Chalet N in the Alps, works of art by Pablo Picasso and Andy Warhol.
So we wouldn’t spend too long dwelling on what appear to be a bunch of Warhol Mao prints pictured underneath these four designer wall lights. (Current bid: €0)
Cleaning up after the collapse of a 1,000+ company empire is no easy task, but helpfully, there are not one, but two toilet brushes up for grabs this time. (Current bid on both: €0)
Further reading:
— Austrian prosecutors accuse René Benko of embezzling tens of millions
#chance #brush #Benko