The liabilities have increased to 2.32 billion euros. There is not enough money to pay all mass costs.
Former real estate Zampano René Benko has been in custody for more than two months. Since the meals of the judiciary are slowly grinding in Austria, the custody should take even longer. Observers even expect the 47-year-old Tyrolean to remain in custody until his criminal trial.
If there is a (alleged) crime such as fraud and infidelity, like suspicion in his case, the custody in Austria can even take up to two years.
It has recently become a bit quieter around the 25 billion euros in the Signa Group. Now, however, the new report by the Benko Private Foundation family, Benko’s central hub in the Signa-Empire, is available. It holds the majority of the insolvent group mother Signa Holding. The report shows that the creditor claims have increased by 46 million to 2.324 billion euros.
No challenge
“The decay of the Signa Group continues in the meantime,” writes administrator Herbert Matzunski. “Due to a wide variety of bankruptcies and resolutions due to voluntary liquidation, the overall view also results for the insolvency debtor family Benko Private Foundation numerous overlaps and unexplained factories.” Matzunski has processed all bank details for credit institutions and searched essential documents in the intercompany area.
“As already feared, the insolvency debtor never had her own assets, which was submitted to recipients within critical deadlines and/or if the insolvency or the over -indebtedness relevant to the insolvency.” In other words, there is no facts that would enable legal challenges of payment flows.
The current mass is not sufficient to cover the mass liabilities. Only the tax advisor is paid, and fees and costs in the commercial register are also paid. Otherwise there is currently not enough money.
Talks rest
However, this imbalance could be averted if the Benko Foundation family succeeds in collecting an open purchase price from an assignment contract for the shares of a company in the amount of three million euros from the Laura private foundation. According to Matzunski, the talks are currently resting, because the companies that are in the middle of Laura disintegrate.
According to Matzunski, the Laura Private Foundation should not be able to or may not be able to obtain the financial resources – at least at the moment – at least at the moment. But you have to know that the Laura private foundation, which is supposed to be under the influence of René Benko, is wealthy.
It belongs to extensive real estate assets in Innsbruck and Germany, the chalet n in Lech and Benko’s hunting Stüblergut in Styria.
Arbitration
Meanwhile, René Benko, the Benko Private Foundation family and the Laura private foundation are confronted with arabic investors in the amount of around 760 million euros and 295.56 million euros in front of the ICC Chamber of Commerce in Geneva.
In the case of the Mubadala State Fund from Abu Dhabi, the Hearings begin at the end of March and in the case of the Qatarian billionaire Hamad Bin Jassim Bin Jaber Al Thani in November 2025. All costs have so far been borne by the Laura private foundation. But now there is a problem.
“At the moment, purely technical difficulties are that the Laura Private Foundation, accused on the defendant side, has not paid for the costs for the three referees that are incurred on the defendant since October 2024,” insolvency administrator Matzunski also writes. “It is currently not assessable whether the cost grants, fees and expenses required by the ICC office continue to be paid or can be paid for.”
Capital increase
The Benko private foundation family was to take part in a capital increase in Signa Holding in June 2023 and contribute 35.35 million euros.
In fact, only two Swiss investors took part in the capital increase with 35.35 million euros.
Arrest warrant
René Benko is said to have used the money of the Swiss to pretend the corresponding share of the Benko private foundation family in the capital increase. Before that, only a few thousand euros are said to have been on the foundation’s account. This allegation is charged against Benko in the arrest warrant. According to reports, René Benko denies the accusation.