The famous Amadea superyacht, owned by Russian billionaire and senator Suleiman Karimov, has passed to the new owner. This was reported by "Business Insider."
According to reports, the US Department of Justice concluded the auction for the 106-meter luxury vessel on September 10 and sold it to an unknown buyer. The auction was organized by the National Maritime Services company in Florida. Official sources did not disclose the transaction value, but the price of the yacht was initially estimated at $300 million, and according to subsequent independent estimates, it fell to $230 million.
US officials aimed to sell the vessel as quickly as possible, as the maintenance of the yacht cost taxpayers approximately $1 million each month - this money was spent on crew salaries, fuel, and insurance expenses.
Amadea is not an ordinary ship, but a real "floating palace." It was built by the German shipbuilding plant Lürssen and means "God's love" in Latin. The yacht consists of six floors, and its interior is decorated with marble, rare wood, and stones. It has 8 luxury cabins, as well as a helicopter field, swimming pool, fitness room, resort, conference hall, wine cellar and lobster aquarium.
The central element of the yacht is a hand-painted Pleiel royalty, all parts of which, from the pedals, are covered with 24-carat gold. This detail makes the Amadea one of the richest decorated private ships in the world.
However, owning a yacht carries significant risks. Because its legal status is debatable, and some plaintiffs have not yet renounced their claims.
For reference, Amadea was confiscated in the Fiji Islands in the spring of 2022 at the request of the United States and subsequently transported to the port of San Diego. Although Karimov personally denied ownership of the vessel, the US prosecutor's office provided the court with the crew's testimony and documents confirming that the billionaire was the first passenger on board the Amadea.
At the same time, it was reported that the interior design of the yacht was redesigned at the personal request of the Karimov family, with pizza tanning and recreation rooms installed. One of the crew members was assigned to always keep a pair of Karimov's favorite Nike sneakers on board the ship.
In 2018, Suleiman Karimov was included in the US sanctions list as "an interested party in the regime of President Vladimir Putin and playing an important role in promoting the malicious activities of Russia." Even after this, according to reports, he agreed to buy the yacht through trusted persons in 2021.
However, Amadea was later officially registered as the property of Millemarin Investments Ltd. Yevgeny Kochman, CEO of Errigan Marine and its nominal owner, Imperial Yachts, also participated in this process.
According to the US Department of Justice, from October 2021 until his confiscation, Karimov and his family traveled on a yacht several times and developed a plan to modernize and re-equip it for long journeys. He even spent $2 million on the ship's maintenance and repair.
Interestingly, after the yacht was confiscated, the former head of Rosneft, Eduard Khudaynatov, claimed to be its true owner. However, the U.S. prosecutor's office assessed him as Karimov's puppet personality, placed to conceal the property.
Finally, in July 2025, a New York federal court authorized Amadea to be put up for auction. Thus, one of the world's most valuable private yachts passed to its new owner - but its true value and future fate remain a mystery.
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