It Happened. Germany Just Seized A Russian Oligarch’s $800 Million Yacht

Germany just fired a shot across the bow of every Russian oligarch.

As you may have read from our previous coverage, in recent days Russian billionaires who are concerned that sanctions are about to drop, have been rushing to move their yachts out of European and American waters.

Moving your yacht is easy when it’s floating in water and just needs a crew to point the navigation towards a friendly port like the Maldives. Moving a yacht is a bit trickier when it’s currently out of the water undergoing a major maintenance job at a German shipyard 🙂

According to reporting first uncovered by The Daily Mail, German authorities operating in the city of Hamburg just seized a $800 million yacht owned by sanctioned Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov.

With a net worth of $19 billion, Usmanov is the fifth-richest Russian person in the world.

The 512-foot yacht, which is called “Dilbar,” has been docked for maintenance with shipbuilders Blohm+Voss for the last several months. Usmanov spent an estimated $600 million over 4.5 years having Dilbar custom built by a German firm. Construction completed in 2016.

Dilbar has TWO helicopter pads and reportedly the largest indoor swimming pool ever installed on a yacht at 180 cubic meters. The vessel requires a full-time crew of at least 80 people.

The interior features 12 suites that can comfortable accommodate two dozens guests in private luxury sanctuaries.

Dilbar was Alisher’s mother’s name and this is actually his SECOND yacht named in her honor. He sold the first iteration of Dilbar to a middle-eastern billionaire.

Here is Dilbar in better times back in April 2017 off the coast of Monte Carlo:

Alisher Usmanov earned his fortune as the majority owner of a conglomerate called Metalloinvest, which manufactures steel. He also co-owns Russia’s second-largest cellphone company, MegaFon and one of the largest copper mining companies in the world, Udokan.

He was also an early investor in Facebook along with fellow Russian billionaire Yuri Milner.

He was previously the owner of 30% of the British soccer club Arsenal. He sold his 30% stake in 2018 for $700 million after having bought his initial 15% stake in 2007 for around $100 million.

The European Union sanctioned Alisher Usmanov on March 1st. He has long-been criticized by American politicians for an alleged track record of bribing Russian officials to facilitate his business interests.