Ukraine auctions seized yacht of ex-MP Medvedchuk with price tag estimated above 130 million euros
The insured value of the Royal Romance yacht belonging to Viktor Medvedchuk's family and currently located in Croatia was €137 million as of 2020, according to Grigol Katamadze, the deputy head of ARMA (Ukraine's Asset Recovery and Management Agency) for European integration issues. Katamadze provided this information during a live broadcast of an ARMA commission meeting, as reported by Ukrinform.
The market value of the yacht will be determined by the organizer of the auction for its sale, which ARMA will choose based on the results of the competition.
"In 2015, the yacht was purchased for approximately €200 million. During these years, the vessel was used, there is depreciation, so it is unlikely that the same amount can be expected at the time of sale. However, according to the documents that were seized during the arrest in 2022 and are currently kept by the Croatian police, in 2020 the yacht was insured for €137 million," Katamadze said.
According to him, it is the future auction organizer who will hire an appraiser and officially determine the starting price of the Royal Romance vessel, at which the asset will be put up for sale.
The money from the sale of the yacht will go to the budget for strengthening defense capabilities.
An English auction will be held, which will be announced again in the event of absence of buyers.
The 92-meter yacht Royal Romance has been under the management of ARMA for sale since April 2022.
It took a year and a half to approve the mechanism for its sale abroad (because it is impossible to deliver the yacht to Ukraine due to the war).
In December 2022, ARMA said they had confirmation from four international auction houses that they were interested in selling Royal Romance.
The boat has six floors and is equipped with two elevators. Among other things, the yacht has four decks, a cinema, a gym, a swimming pool, a spa area and a cosmetology room, as well as about 50 rooms of various purposes.
Ukraine handed over Medvedchuk to Russia in September 2022 in exchange for 200 soldiers captured in Mariupol.
While in Russia, he bought a new yacht, but not as luxurious as the old one.
