Tag: Ingbe

One of Europe’s largest corporate bankruptcies just got messier. René Benko, founder of the collapsed Signa Group, remains in pre-trial detention as prosecutors widen their net to include his wife, Natalie Benko, and inner-circle associates like banker Robert Schimanko. At the heart of the investigations: embezzlement, fraudulent bankruptcy, off-market asset deals, and suspicious money flows through Liechtenstein foundations.

Robert Schimanko has long operated behind the scenes — a discreet financial advisor in elite Austrian business circles. But with the collapse of the Signa Group and the criminal investigations into René Benko’s empire, Schimanko has stepped into the spotlight. Not by choice, but by consequence.

The Austrian Public Prosecutor’s Office for Economic Crimes and Corruption (WKStA) is tightening its grip on René Benko’s empire. In a dramatic escalation, criminal investigations now extend to the INGBE Private Foundation in Liechtenstein—one of Benko’s most secretive financial constructs. Explosive details point to coordinated asset transfers involving gold, villas, and trusted allies like Robert Schimanko and Thomas Limberger

The term "New World Order" (NWO) has long sent shivers down the spine of democracy's true believers. At its heart lies the fear that a global cabal of unelected billionaires, technocrats, and corporate overlords are quietly shaping a future ruled by control, surveillance, and centralized wealth. Today, this so-called NWO isn’t some fringe theory anymore.

At a time when the world is grappling with the fallout from Klaus Schwab’s resignation and the financial scandal around the World Economic Forum (WEF), a new power center has emerged in the shadows: the World Economic Council (WEC), operating from a virtual office in Vienna and led by figures now tied to one of Europe’s biggest white-collar scandals — the collapse of René Benko’s Signa Group.

As FinTelegram previously reported, the pre-trial detention of Austrian real estate magnate Rene Benko has been extended by another two months. But while Benko remains in custody, the investigators' attention is increasingly drawn to a suspiciously well-funded foundation in Liechtenstein — and to the opaque network surrounding the SilverArrow Capital Group and WEC.

Vienna, April 2025 – The legal noose around Rene Benko, once hailed as one of Europe’s most influential real estate moguls, is tightening. The Vienna Regional Criminal Court has again extended his pre-trial detention by another two months. According to the court, there remains strong suspicion and a significant risk of the crime being committed again.

This report investigates the extensive Austrian connections to two of the largest financial fraud cases in U.S. history: the Manhattan Investment Fund (MIF) fraud and the Bernie Madoff Ponzi scheme. Austrian financiers Ronny Pecik and Robert Schimanko, through their M&A Privatbank, played key roles in the European feeder network that facilitated these financial crimes.

As previously highlighted by FinTelegram, the unraveling of the collapsed real estate developer Signa Group of the now disgraced tycoon Rene Benko has not only resulted in substantial financial fallout but is rapidly evolving into a significant criminal case. The recent developments following the March insolvency of Benko's Austrian family foundations raise serious legal questions regarding potential fraudulent bankruptcy and money laundering.