Law firm loans money to empty Zsar bankruptcy estate

The bankruptcy estate of Zsar, a shopping village in Virolahti, has no liquid funds, Yle reports. The law firm handling the estate has loaned money to cover essential running costs, including electricity bills.

“The estate currently has no liquid assets,” estate administrator Matti Manner said in an email to Yle. Liquid assets include cash, money in a bank account or property that can be used immediately.

Manner did not disclose how much Brander & Manner Oy has lent to the estate, saying only that it was “some”. The money is intended to ensure that the shopping village’s buildings and property are kept in good condition.

Manner said lending money to a bankruptcy estate was not typical, although it was not entirely unusual. The law firm’s loan was previously reported by the newspaper Kaakonkulma.

Sale negotiations nearing a decision

Zsar has been vacant since it went bankrupt in 2022, and a new owner has been sought for several years. Negotiations are currently under way with one potential buyer. The sale was originally expected to be completed last December but has been delayed by almost a year.

The bankruptcy estate has attributed the delay to investigations related to value-added tax. Manner said the sales process was now in its final stages and that the matter would be resolved during the autumn, one way or another.

“There is no fixed and absolute deadline, but the situation must be resolved one way or the other during the autumn,” Manner said.

In December, Helsingin Sanomat reported that Zsar was to be bought by Datatriumnord, a Finnish company linked to Russian ruble billionaire Viktor Ignatyev. The company’s activities include owning properties and managing retail operations, as well as potential business related to data and data centres.

Yle later reported that Ignatyev has a connection through a business partner to oligarch Gennady Timchenko, who is part of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s inner circle.