The process of selling Medvedchuk’s yacht has entered the final stage, — ARMA

ARMA is bringing the sale of the Royal Romance yacht closer – one of the most expensive seized assets related to the sanctioned Viktor Medvedchuk.

This was announced by the Asset Management and Tracing Agency (ARMA).

After a long period of international approvals, court procedures and overcoming numerous legal obstacles, the process of selling the asset has entered its final stage.

The story of the Royal Romance has become unprecedented for Ukraine. For the first time, an seized asset located abroad is undergoing a sale procedure with the participation of the Ukrainian state.

The yacht was seized in Croatia in 2022 and transferred to the management of ARMA for further sale. However, the sale of the asset faced large-scale legal resistance.

Due to the expiration of the legal deadline for sale in 2024, the procedure had to be restarted, re-substantiating the need to sell the asset and going through a complex process of international approval.

“The case was significantly complicated by the activities of persons associated with Viktor Medvedchuk, who used existing legal mechanisms to delay the process and block the adoption of necessary decisions. An additional challenge was the multi-level system of legal structures and protective mechanisms created in several foreign jurisdictions,” the national agency said.

Despite this, ARMA, together with Ukrainian and international partners, managed to ensure significant progress in the case. The necessary legal position was formed, key procedural barriers were removed, and prerequisites were created for completing the process of selling the asset.

The Royal Romance case became one of the most illustrative examples of how sanctions policy should work in practice. The seizure of an asset in itself is not the ultimate goal. The real result is achieved when individuals who have been using their wealth for years to maintain influence and avoid responsibility finally lose control over these resources.

After all legal procedures are completed, the proceeds from the sale of the Royal Romance could become one of the largest revenues to the state budget from the sale of seized assets in the entire history of Ukraine.

Earlier, USM reported that ARMA announced a competition to transfer the Russian vessel Emmakris III to management.