Deutsche Bank Gets a Break in Quest for $350 Million Vik Assets

(Bloomberg) -- Deutsche Bank AG finally stands to recover some of the $350 million it’s seeking from Norwegian investor Alexander Vik.

The shares in a software company previously registered to a relative of Vik’s, and that Deutsche got a court to freeze, have now been sold in a compulsory transaction arranged by Norwegian authorities. The transaction marks the first time the bank will recover assets in its year-long battle with Vik, its Norwegian lawyer said.

The sale of Confirmit ASA was announced in a statement on Wednesday that didn’t specify the seller or the deal’s value. Deutsche Bank’s lawyer, Olav Perland, and Pal Malmros, a partner at private-equity firm Verdane, which is the buyer, both declined to provide a figure. A Deutsche Bank spokesperson declined to comment.

Deutsche Bank has been trying for years to recover from Vik what Perland said now amounts to more than $350 million, including interest. The conflict between the bank and the investor goes back to a series of trades made during the financial crisis in 2008. Vik initially sued Deutsche Bank for as much as $8 billion. But in 2013, a U.K. court ruled that Deutsche was in fact owed money by Vik.

Vik, whose wealth has been estimated at $1 billion, has been named as a resident of Monaco in earlier court documents.

The Confirmit group had revenues of about $73 million in 2018, according to its annual report.

--With assistance from Steven Arons.

To contact the reporter on this story: Mikael Holter in Oslo at mholter2@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Tasneem Hanfi Brögger at tbrogger@bloomberg.net

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