The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council has rejected an appeal by UBS/Credit Suisse and upheld a 2022 ruling from a Bermuda court ordering the bank to pay USD 607 million in compensation to former Georgian Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili. The decision, released on Wednesday, finalizes the last stage of litigation in Bermuda and leaves the compensation order intact.
The case stems from insurance-related investment products that Ivanishvili and his family bought from Credit Suisse Life in Bermuda in 2011–2012, amounting to around USD 750 million. In 2015, Ivanishvili discovered that nearly USD 400 million had been lost through fraudulent transactions orchestrated by his personal banker, Patrice Lescaudron who later admitted to forging signatures and documents. Courts in both Bermuda and Singapore determined that Credit Suisse failed to properly supervise Lescaudron, despite the bank’s insistence that he acted alone.
The Privy Council ruling marks Credit Suisse’s second major defeat in the long-running dispute. In 2022, a Singapore court ordered the bank to pay USD 461 million in damages. UBS, which absorbed Credit Suisse in March 2023, has inherited all legal liabilities and previously set aside the required sums in an interest-bearing escrow account.
However, questions remain about whether the USD 607 million can be released. U.S. sanctions imposed on Ivanishvili in December 2024 currently block the payout of the Singapore award unless the U.S. Treasury grants specific approval. While the sanctions documentation does not reference the Bermuda or Privy Council proceedings, financial institutions typically seek formal guidance from U.S. authorities before transferring funds to a sanctioned individual.
The Privy Council decision concludes the legal process in Bermuda but leaves unresolved the geopolitical and regulatory barriers surrounding payment. For UBS, the ruling reinforces a pattern of losses across every jurisdiction where the Ivanishvili cases have been litigated, while for Ivanishvili, the final outcome may depend on decisions far outside the courtroom.
