By Sonia RolleyPosted 20-01-2020Modified 20-01-2020 at 17:37
Following the revelations of the "Luanda Leaks", in partnership with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ). While Angolan justice decided to freeze the assets of Isabel dos Santos and her husband Sindika Dokolo - accusing them of having abused the state diamond company, Sodiam -, the leak of tens of thousands of documents shows how the couple took diamonds from Angola. Investigation.
Exchanges of e-mails were launched on Tuesday, March 11, 2014 between the walls of the discreet management company Fidequity, located on Boulevard de la Liberté in Lisbon, Portugal. Main business managers of the wealthy Isabel dos Santos and her husband Sindika Dokolo , the employees of this company, which belongs to them, are used to the most unexpected financial arrangements. But that day, its chief financial officer fumed. " The 4 million is Sodiam's money ," said Antonio Fernandès. " Does it make sense that a Sindika Dokolo company charges interest on money from the state diamond company? This email, like thousands of other Fidequity employees, was entrusted by a whistleblower to the African Whistleblower Protection Platform (PPLAAF), ICIJ's partner in this investigation. Main respondent, Mr. Sindika Dokolo denounces the theft and manipulation of this personal data.
The question posed by Mr. Fernandès is at the heart of what opposes the regime of new president João Lourenço today to the family of his predecessor José Eduardo dos Santos: the use of public money for the 2012 acquisition of the Swiss jeweler De Grisogono. The friend and founder of the brand, the whimsical Fawaz Gruosi, has been experiencing financial troubles since 2007 and needs to pay off his debts. " We wanted to create an Angolan " de Beers " , from extraction to marketing, but Sodiam refused, this is one of the reasons for the failure of the operation, " assures Mr. Dokolo. The former oligarch sweeps doubts with the same assurance about the merits of this stake. “ It would have been impossible for the Angolan state, as for us, to acquire another luxury jeweler. Do you know how much it costs? More than 10 billion for Tiffany's! "
In one of the hundreds of thousands of e-mails that ICIJ - and its 36 partners including Radio France Internationale (RFI) - were able to consult, Mr. Antonio Fernandès reminds that Sodiam, the state-owned diamond company in Angola, invested 45 million dollars in February 2012, four million dollars to pay its participation, the rest is mainly used to pay off the debts of the Swiss jeweler. Melbourne Investments BV, its partner - one of Sindika Dokolo's companies in the Netherlands - injects four million to pay for its shares. Even though the initial investments are unbalanced, they are well presented on paper as equal shareholders in Victoria Holding Limited, a joint venture based in Malta. At the same time, the latter becomes the majority shareholder of the extravagant De Grisogono.
A jeweler “ offered ” by José Eduardo dos Santos ?
This transaction motivates the Angolan justice decision to freeze the couple's assets and accounts in Angola. According to the decision rendered on December 23, 2019, the Angolan state accuses in a court of Luanda " the former president of the Republic " of having " decided to buy the debt of the company De Grisogono - luxury jeweler - with the banks and to offer the business to the defendants, his daughter and his son-in-law . " José Eduardo dos Santos , then in power since 1979, is said to have " instructed " Sodiam " to embark on the business by assuming all the charges inherent in it ". The new regime in Luanda claims today that nearly $ 120 million has been loaned by the state-owned company since 2012 even though it ultimately only has a “ 28.7 % minority stake ” in the government. share capital of De Grisogono. He assures that Sodiam, itself, received " no dividend " and "did not participate in the management of the foreign companies in which it invested its capital, having limited itself to paying the co-financing ". Charges dismissed out of hand by the couple who described them as " political ".
There are days when even at Fidequity, the portfolio managers seem to have trouble understanding all the intricacies of Mr. Dokolo's arrangements. On March 11, 2014, his chief financial officer got angry because a few months earlier, he had already tried to clarify by e-mail that there was “ no interest on the financing of the investment of the loan from Melbourne ”. Even for Antonio Fernandès, it seems exaggerated that the Dutch company collects interest on public money. It is not surprising, however, that this first investment does not come directly from the pocket of his boss.
The first two years of management of Victoria Holding Limited seem to have been chaotic. It was not until 2014 that the rendering of accounts at December 31, 2012 would be adopted. The delicate operation was entrusted to the American audit giant PricewaterhouseCoopers International Limited (PwC), both a chartered accountant and auditor of several of the couple societies. Fighting at Fidequity, there are still missing documents, loan agreements that have not been " finalized ". For the couple management company, not all information is good to share either. At the request of his superiors, Antonio Fernandès obtains accountants from PwC to keep silent the names of the ultimate beneficiaries of the operation. This discretion is imposed, not only for Sindika Dokolo, but also for Sodiam. However, the CFO knows full well that the businessman is present for two reasons, as co-shareholder of Victoria Holding Limited, but also up to 0.7% " through a trust company ".
A five million bonus for the buyout
" Victoria Holding Limited has entered into a consultancy agreement with Almerk International Limited based in Tortola, in the British Virgin Islands ," noted the same PwC accountant Daniel Difesa another day. On October 16, 2013, the latter questioned Fidequity: " Please let us know if Almerk International Limited is a related party so that we can ensure that the appropriate information is included in the draft accounts ". According to documents that RFI and the media partners of ICIJ were able to consult, this company based in a tax haven obtained five million dollars as a bonus for helping to conclude the acquisition of De Grisogono by Victoria Holding Limited. " Almerk's human resources have significant expertise, skills, abilities and knowledge and a background in strategic planning and financial advice to clients regarding mergers and acquisitions, " explained the contract signed on 14 October 2011.
Antonio Fernandès claims not to know the " shareholding of the company " Almerk. Unsurprisingly, it's still Sindika Dokolo. It is always the chief financial officer of Fidequity who a few weeks later explains to one of his collaborators that “ Almerk transferred this amount to Sindika Dokolo, and this for Melbourne. From here came the four million dollars that Melbourne put in Victoria Holding… ”In other words, it was Sodiam's money that was used to finance the first loan granted to its co-shareholder, Melbourne Investments Limited. “ The Almerk bonus is nothing unusual. Nothing compelled me to reinvest it ”, is content to comment on Mr. Dokolo.
For Isabel dos Santos' husband, everything is justified, even the difference between the initial investment of the two shareholders. " Sodiam has invested more in the sales platform and I have invested in the purchasing platform ," he says. However, Angolan justice has ruled the transaction unfavorable to the state diamond company. Among the documents provided by the authorities to the Luanda court, there is a list of privileged clients, including two companies of Mr. Dokolo, Odissey and Relactant Ventures Corp and some of his relatives. Angolan justice attributes four to Sindika Dokolo. "" Preferred client " in Portuguese means approved client with a contractual purchase program with Sodiam. I have always had at most only two companies buying diamonds in Angola, ”retorts the son-in-law of the former Angolan president. When João Lourenço's regime accuses him of having robbed the state of several hundred million dollars on the profits from the sale of Angolan diamonds, Sindika Dokolo denies any preferential treatment: “ The others paid 5 %. And we, 7.5 %, or 2.5 % more ... on behalf of the partnership in De Grisogono. "
The state-owned diamond company mainly accuses Mr. Dokolo of having invested less than it. Sodiam has borrowed $ 120 million at a rate of 9% which is passed on to 9.5% to its joint venture, Victoria Holding Limited and De Grisogono, this could represent up to $ 131 million to be repaid. According to the "Luanda Leaks", the Congolese businessman applied or obtained lower interest rates, but his own management documents only confirm that almost 100 million investments, mainly from bank loans. " It's still a lie. I invested 115 million in capital like Sodiam, this is what PwC established and what was presented to the shareholders of Victoria Holding in November 2019, ”assures Mr. Dokolo. “As for me, I also continuously supplied stone stocks on credit to De Grisogono for amounts that varied between $ 50 and $ 200 million. "
Become people like the others
PwC accountants and auditors have, however, expressed concerns over the years about the financial health of the Swiss jeweler. They note year after year that debts greatly exceed assets. De Grisogono's marketing and promotion costs are constantly increasing. " You will tell me which large luxury company spends less than that on promotion to develop a global brand ," retorts Mr. Dokolo.
De Grisogono's reputation has been built around two elements: its creations with explosive associations of colored stones and the celebrations of its artistic director and founder Fawaz Gruosi on the sidelines of the Cannes Film Festival. Isabel dos Santos and Sindika Dokolo love this event at the very chic Eden Roc Hotel in Antibes where people, future business partners and new customers meet. "Fawaz" invites them, the jet set and to entertain this beautiful world, distinguished guests, actors, singers and top model.
In 2012, the most famous oligarchs couple from Central Africa were able to rub shoulders with American actors Alex Baldwin, Adrien Brody or even Chris Tucker who will later allow them to climb the steps of the Festival. There is also Ivana Trump, the first wife of the current American president. That year, Victoria Holding Limited paid - not without complaint - the bill of more than 20,000 euros from one of its co-shareholders, a penthouse suite, two luxury rooms and a limousine for five days spent parading on the Croisette . All reserved in the name of Sindika Dokolo. " They often put rooms in my name which were in fact rooms of celebrities who came at the last minute, " says the businessman.
Sales, on the other hand, do not explode as expected. They even regressed from 2016. De Grisogono opened boutiques everywhere, including in France. The Swiss jeweler had one in Cannes of course, but it became thanks to its Angolan sponsors also present in Saint-Barth, Courchevel and Paris. The "Luanda Leaks" reveal that De Grisogono France is only related to the parent company in Switzerland by its majority shareholder. In France, Sodiam disappears from the equation.
" An army of consultants, analysts and specialists "
Created in 2013, the French branch of De Grisogono - DG France - is a subsidiary of Euro Atlantic Asset Management, one of the 450 companies behind which the couple is hiding. Sindika Dokolo remains ultra majority with 70%. Gilles Mansard, a former member of the bombarded Chopard house, director general of DG France, obtained 30% of the shares in this financial vehicle by way of profit-sharing.
To launch this new franchise, the Congolese businessman borrows nine million euros in September 2013 from Banco Bic, a Portuguese bank in which his wife holds 25% of the shares. The following month he bought more than four million Swiss francs in jewelry from De Grisogono SA. But the results do not seem to be there. " Paris is disappointing, the shop has been burgled twice ", can we read in the minutes of the May 2014 meeting of the board of directors of De Grisogono SA, the Swiss branch. But these two burglaries, only five months after its opening, did not scare the management committee. “ The insurance covered the amount of theft (400,000 CHF) as it did for the burglary in Cannes. According to several internal documents produced by Fidequity, DG France had to buy stones at a preferential rate, with between 20 and 60% off.
The financial situation is so bad that even Fawaz Gruosi gets carried away on February 3, 2014 when suppliers remain unpaid and copies Sindika Dokolo. “ I am extremely surprised and disappointed that after almost two years since the change of management, and after all the promises and the great declarations made to our suppliers and collaborators, we are still in such a situation ???? The founder of De Grisogono criticizes having recruited " an army of advisers, consultants, analysts and specialists " to improve management and always having " the same problems as before ".
Sodiam's “ doubts about the accounts ”
Sodiam is not, however, so absent from the management of Victoria Holding Limited and De Grisogono as it claims. On April 15, 2015, its administrative and financial director, Maria de Matos Figueiredo Mendes, even expressed its " doubts about the accounts ". She questions the Fidequity team about the " highest " administrative and personnel costs . " So we would like to know how this figure is justified, " she asks. His counterpart at De Grisogono, Ricardo Diz, responded by citing the number of sellers in his twelve shops around the world, his more than 100 employees and above all the need for " recurrent investments in product creation, marketing to distribution to send our products to potential customers. "
On several occasions, the administrative and financial director of Sodiam herself specifies that the state diamond company is only a " facilitating vehicle for the acquisition by Victoria Holding of a majority stake in De Grisogono ". Reason why, according to her, the state company " should not be considered as the real debtor " of the operations of the Swiss jeweler.
Sodiam seems to be satisfied with everything until the coming to power in September 2017 of a new president in Angola and former secretary general of the party-state, João Lourenço. His " doubts " and remarks never stopped him from signing new multi-million dollar loans. In 2016, De Grisogono even obtained the cut of the largest diamond found in Angola, the “404”. With an estimated value of 20 million dollars, this Angolan gem is sold at auction for the tidy sum of 34 million. Facing the press, the Genevan jeweler presents himself as the future " world leader in fine jewelry and watches ". However, the company is in near cessation of payment and must lay off.
The final blow was given in December 2017. Sodiam publicly announces its desire to exit the capital of De Grisogono, even before looking for a buyer. Behind the scenes, former partners seize hold of their joint venture. Despite the formal notice from the Angolan State and the hundreds of millions of dollars invested - in liquidity and in precious stones - the glamorous evenings in Cannes and their parade of stars, Victoria Holding Limited and De Grisogono ensure that they cannot reimburse either the neither lack of having recorded " positive results since 2012 ".
Response rights :
Mr. Sindika Dokolo agreed to grant an interview to RFI to respond to the main allegations arising from the Luanda Leaks' investigation.
The founder of the Grisogono brand, Fawaz Gruosi , assured that his role has been “ reduced by the shareholders ” to that of “ artistic director ” and that it is not his responsibility “ to get involved in the structure of the company, whatever it is . " Consequently, he considered that he was unable to answer on the merits the questions of the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ). He claims that the shareholders' loans were " substantial " without specifying the amount.
The financial director of Fidequity, Antonio Rodrigues , and the accountant of PwC, Daniel Difesa , did not respond to the various requests from ICIJ.
Interviewed by ICIJ and its partner media, the American audit firm PricewaterhouseCoopers International Limited announced that it had " taken measures to put an end to all work in progress for entities controlled by members of the dos Santos family ". He said he had opened an investigation to respond to " very serious and disturbing allegations that have been raised " by the "Luanda Leaks" investigation and " strive to maintain the highest professional standards ".
On the same subject
"Luanda Leaks": for Sindika Dokolo, "there is a will to harm us"
The "Luanda Leaks" or the exposure of the Santos-Dokolo ecosystem
"Luanda Leaks": Sindika Dokolo, her empire in the shade of the Santos backs
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