The court ordered CS to pay former Georgian Prime Minister Ivanishvili nearly $1 billion

ZURICH, May 26 (Reuters) – Singapore’s International Commercial Court has ordered Credit Suisse to pay $926 million to Georgian Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili, who led the Georgian government in 2012-13, for the loss of part of his fortune.

The court said in a ruling on Friday that a Swiss bank had failed to protect Ivanishvili’s assets by denying him access to Patrice Lescaudron, an adviser to Credit Suisse Trust in Singapore.

Credit Suisse, which will soon be taken over by its competitor UBS, immediately announced an appeal against the verdict.

The $926 million they owe Credit Suisse will be reduced by the $79 million already paid to them in December.

In 2018, Lescaudron was sentenced to eight years in prison for forging the signatures of former clients, including Ivanishvili. He admitted to forging contracts and concealing losses; the fraud earned him tens of millions of Swiss francs. He was released in 2019 and committed suicide in 2020.

The Bermuda Supreme Court ruled in March 2022 that Ivanishvili and his family should receive compensation “well over $500 million” from Credit Suisse’s local life insurance arm, CS Life.

The original message in English is available at the code: (John Revill)