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Seized $75 Million Axioma Sells at Auction, and the Rich Are Still Winning

Bidding has closed on the seized $75 million superyacht Axioma, which had been stranded in Gibraltar since March this year when authorities arrested it. Within two weeks, the transaction will be complete, and Axioma will effectively be changing hands. Ka-ching!
Bidding on seized Axioma has closed, and it will change hands in 2 weeks' time 22 photos
Photo: Yacht Charter Fleet
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With the auction, Axioma became the first sale of the kind, from the score of megayachts, superyachts, and other luxury assets seized from Russian oligarchs under current international sanctions. Analysts and industry insiders tell Reuters that the auction will probably be a “watershed” for banks with financial claims, where they’d use the sanctions to try and recoup some of their money.

The same media outlet notes that the U.S. and the UK have pledged to send funds thus generated to Ukraine. They haven’t done it yet because there is no precedent for the sale of seized assets of this type, but they want to. It would only seem right that they did it since the international sanctions target Russian oligarchs whose billions are believed to finance Putin’s war in Ukraine. It would be a Robin Hood-like gesture, where countries with sanction laws take from the rich partly responsible for the war and give back to the country on which the war efforts are concentrated.

But this isn’t what the sale of Axioma is all about. The Gibraltar Admiralty Court has confirmed that bidding has closed, with 63 bids registered in total. It will take another 10 to 14 days for the transaction to complete and the vessel to change hands – and it’s highly likely that all the money goes directly to the bank.

Superyacht Axioma, one of the first superyachts seized from Russian oligarchs, will sell at auction soon
Photo: Yacht Charter Fleet
Axioma, a 2013 gorgeous, five-deck, 72-meter (236 feet) superyacht delivered in 2013 by Dunya Shipyards, was last estimated at $75 million (which may or may not be entirely accurate). It was seized in March after billionaire owner Dmitry Pumpyansky was included on the sanctions list, but the reason for its arrest was the fact that Pumpyansky had defaulted on a $21.5 million loan from J.P. Morgan. Put it differently, solidarity with the people of Ukraine be damned: Axioma was seized so the bank could recover at least some of its money.

Previous reports said that the vessel’s association with a Russian oligarch, as well as the fact that it would sell at no reserve, probably meant it would change hands for the equivalent of peanuts for a billionaire – meaning, the amount J.P. Morgan was due. A $75 million superyacht selling for $21.5 million that’s what you call a good bargain.

James Jaffa, a lawyer for British firm Jaffa & Co, which represented Axioma before it was seized, told the same media outlet that the amount could be “way below” $20 million because wages and taxes had to be paid from the money from the auction as well. Still, the bank would get at least a good portion of the money it was due.

Superyacht Axioma, one of the first superyachts seized from Russian oligarchs, will sell at auction soon
Photo: Yacht Charter Fleet
Assuming Axioma sold for more than the $21.5 million of J.P. Morgan’s loan, what happens to the rest of the money? The answer is perhaps even more startling: probably nothing.

A source from the Gibraltar Admiralty Court tells Bloomberg that, in the eventuality high interest in the vessel translated into higher bids, whatever money is left after everything is paid off will be frozen. The official line is that “further proceeds from the sale would be up to the court to disburse,” but the reality is probably more along the lines of “the money would likely be frozen rather than handed to anyone other than the oligarch.”

We’ll probably know more in a couple of weeks when the auction process is complete, and Axioma will finally change hands and sail off from Gibraltar. Prior to the war and the sanctions, this superyacht was one of the most popular charter platforms and one of the few Russian-owned vessels offered for charter to the public, at prices starting at $650,000 a week.

Axioma is a standout vessel, if only for its luxury amenities and entertaining capabilities and its memorable turquoise blue paintjob on the hull. Offering accommodation for 12 guests and 20 crew members, it boasts a 3D cinema, pool and jacuzzi, elegant indoor and outdoor spaces for a variety of purposes, and a garage packed with water toys. It’s a catch, especially if you get it at less than half its value.

Superyacht Axioma, one of the first superyachts seized from Russian oligarchs, will sell at auction soon
Photo: Yacht Charter Fleet
Chances are that Axioma will become even more famous and sought after once all this ownership hubbub is water under the bridge (pun intended) because people seem to love a controversial thing better than the non-controversial, vanilla version. In the end, it’s the bank and the world’s rich who come out as winners. As always.

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About the author: Elena Gorgan
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Elena has been writing for a living since 2006 and, as a journalist, she has put her double major in English and Spanish to good use. She covers automotive and mobility topics like cars and bicycles, and she always knows the shows worth watching on Netflix and friends.
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