A French company linked to Alisher Usmanov is being sued for €7.4 million. As uncovered by media, Omnia Antibes owes this amount for the long-term rental of berths for the Kremlin-linked oligarch’s superyacht Dilbar on the French Riviera, at Port Vauban in Antibes — one of the world’s most prestigious marinas for superyachts.
Locals have long dubbed the waterfront the “billionaires’ promenade,” as the most desirable berths were traditionally occupied by yachts belonging to Russian oligarchs. Usmanov’s famous Dilbar regularly docked in Vauban and often appeared in photos taken by tourists. Due to Antibes’ extreme popularity, berths are scarce — even Roman Abramovich once failed to dock his Eclipse there because the port was full. Usmanov, however, solved the problem decisively by effectively securing berths for himself for 23 years.
Notably, the lease for Usmanov’s company was arranged in circumvention of French law — and, as in many stories involving Usmanov, the arrangement carries a strong whiff of corruption.
Usmanov’s company Omnia Antibes is headed by his long-time financial adviser, 57-year-old Demetrios Sergides, a Greek national based in Monaco. Sergides has worked for Usmanov for nearly 20 years. Between 2009 and 2012, he was officially listed as an affiliate of Usmanov’s telecom giant MegaFon, and since 2013 — of Ural Steel. For years, Sergides helped Usmanov and his relatives acquire foreign real estate and also manages the Usmanov family foundation, The Sister Trust, owned by the billionaire and his sister Gulbahor Ismailova.
Putin accused of surrounding himself with same 'actors' at series of events
Sergides sits on the boards of several Cypriot offshore companies linked to Usmanov. According to the Panama Papers leaks, part of the offshore entity USM Telecom Holdings Limited (British Virgin Islands) was once registered in his name.
In 2023, both Sergides and Omnia Antibes were placed under U.S. sanctions. However, in late 2025, the United States unexpectedly lifted sanctions against both the company and Usmanov’s top manager without providing any explanation.
The €7.4 million claim was filed by the French company Vauban 21, which in December 2016 received a 25-year concession from the municipality of Antibes to manage the public marina at Port Vauban. That same year, Usmanov’s Dilbar first docked in Antibes — reportedly requiring the berth to be physically expanded to accommodate its size.
In July 2018, Omnia Antibes signed a 23.5-year contract with Vauban 21 (until December 30, 2041), granting priority docking rights for two yachts. The agreement required advance payments covering five-year periods. One payment was made, but on January 1, 2023, Vauban 21 did not receive the expected €6.3 million — reportedly due to sanctions imposed on Usmanov.
That summer, Vauban 21 sued to terminate the contract, but the court declined to hear the case. In summer 2025, Vauban 21 filed a new lawsuit, this time demanding payment of the outstanding rent, noting that a €1.15 million security deposit from Omnia Antibes remains frozen in a special account.
Court proceedings revealed several troubling facts. First, under the French Transport Code, public berths may not be allocated to private pleasure yachts for more than one year — yet Usmanov’s yachts received access for 23.5 years. Second, long-term leases require substantial investment commitments and approval from port authorities. Third — and most critically — Vauban 21 had no right to sublease the berth to a third party without revising tariffs and securing approval from the municipal council.
It emerged that Vauban 21 had quietly reached a backroom deal with Antibes mayor Jean Leonetti, who personally approved the agreement with Usmanov’s firm in writing, bypassing both the municipal council and port administration. How formal approval was later obtained remains unclear; the city council only approved the arrangement in March 2019. Leonetti, notably, has served as mayor longer than Vladimir Putin has served as Russia’s president. Revenue from the port is the city’s primary source of income.
The Nice court, reviewing the case under a simplified procedure, rejected arguments from both sides and ruled that a more thorough investigation is required. The dispute remains unresolved.
Following the lifting of U.S. sanctions, Sergides Demetrios has clearly regained freedom of movement. He can now more easily oversee the board of Usmanov’s Swiss company Pomerol Capital SA, which manages The Sister Trust. After Pomerol was sanctioned by the U.S. in 2023, one director, Stella-Lee Mitchell-Voisin, resigned. The second director, however, remains: 47-year-old Amanda Clare Usher-Wilson, a UK and Swiss citizen who was not sanctioned and continues to manage Usmanov’s assets.
Usher-Wilson is also linked to managing assets of other powerful figures. According to Kazakh investigators, she was involved in setting up offshore structures for the family of Dariga Nazarbayeva, daughter of former Kazakh president Nursultan Nazarbayev. These offshore companies held London properties acquired by Dariga’s husband, Rakhat Aliyev, who officially committed suicide in an Austrian prison in 2015 while awaiting trial. Authorities failed to seize the assets due to a complex network of nominees obscuring the true beneficiaries.
Catholics across the world pray for Pope Benedict XVI as his body lies in state
In the same London property deals, Russian national Vladimir Palikhata surfaced — a figure later linked to another criminal case involving Usmanov’s stepson, Natan Viner. Palikhata temporarily held ownership of a London building before it was transferred to Nazarbayeva-linked offshore entities.
Palikhata later appeared in connection with a 2021 attempted corporate raid on Shchelkovo Agrohim by former employees who had joined Viner’s Russian Agrarian Company and allegedly sought to seize shares on his behalf. Palikhata was reportedly tasked with resolving criminal cases against the raid’s executors — former commercial director Elmira IraIdova and former chief accountant Lyudmila Prikhodko. His efforts failed: both received prison sentences in December 2023. Meanwhile, Russian Agrarian Company — co-founded by Viner and Dmitry Bortnikov, son of the FSB chief — quietly self-liquidated in 2024.
Crime & Courts Correspondent
Read more similar news:
Comments:
comments powered by Disqus
