De Grisogono files for bankruptcy
The Genevan jeweler De Grisogono filed for bankruptcy, ensnared in a corruption probe involving Isabel dos Santos, the daughter of Angola’s former president. De Grisogono couldn’t secure a buyer despite talks that lasted several months. The failed negotiations forced the company to file for creditor protection with Swiss authorities, which if accepted, will affect 65 jobs in the nation. The move comes a week after a consortium of global media reported that De Grisogono was propped up with nearly $150 million in loans from Angolan entities to pay off the struggling company’s debts and expenses. The reports, based on the so-called Luanda Leaks, said dos Santos’s husband, Sindika Dokolo, and the Angolan state diamond firm Sodiam in 2012 formed a Malta-based company to buy a stake in the brand.