« Smoked out | Main | It came from the Blogosphere... »
March 3, 2010
Russian Playboy Mikhail Prokhorov Loses $53M Mansion Deposit
ABC News
by Alexander Marquardt
Guess he'll have to settle for Daniel Goldstein's home instead.
Anywhere in the world, $53 million is considered a hefty sum for a house. For one of Russia's most prominent oligarchs that's just a 10 percent deposit, and he just lost it.
A French court ruled Monday that nickel tycoon Mikhail Prokhorov would not get back the deposit he put down on a sprawling, $530 million villa on the French Riviera. He backed out of the purchase in 2008 as the global financial crisis gathered steam.
"We have lost," Prokhorov's lawyer Jean-Pierre Gastaud said after the court in the southern city of Nice made its decision. Gastaud said he would urge his client to appeal.
Prokhorov, who is 44 and a billionaire many times over, is still shopping. An avid 6'9" tall basketball fan, he is awaiting approval by the NBA for his purchase of a controlling interest in the New Jersey Nets.
Related coverage...
The Star-Ledger, Prospective NJ Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov loses $53 million deposit on world's highest-priced home
The same day, a New York judge ruled against opponents of the Atlantic Yards project in Brooklyn, putting the Nets a step closer to moving to a new home there in 2012.
Posted by eric at March 3, 2010 2:30 PM