Russian investors were repaid millions just before Dolphin Trust collapse

German court hears how the bust property group compensated Russians while 1,800 Irish investors could lose €107 million

Charles Smethurst, founder of Dolphin Trust, and his wife Manou Lenz, fashion retail businesswoman. Photo: Getty

A group of Russian investors clawed back some of the millions they were owed just before Dolphin Trust collapsed, court documents reveal.

While 1,800 Irish investors burned by the bust German property fund fear losing all or most of their monies, the Russian participants exerted pressure to be repaid before the company filed for bankruptcy, the Bremen insolvency court in Germany was told last week.

As early as 2019 the Russian investors feared their money ...