By Alec Hogg
The financial vultures are flocking around what’s left of one-time billionaire Markus Jooste’s assets. Latest to stake a claim is Steinhoff, the company he built and then massively defrauded.
An announcement from the company yesterday said it has been given permission by the Amsterdam District Court to force Jooste to contribute to any payments awarded to litigating European shareholders. The court has agreed to summons Jooste within three months.
How that will work in practice, however, is an open question. It seems unlikely South African authorities would allow Steinhoff’s former CEO to leave the country. And given the law suits from debtor banks, growing legal expenses and the collapse in the value of his major asset, how much Jooste actually has left is anyone’s guess.
