"It has been 1 month since we offered to write an article to a number of publications in Switzerland, but we have not received approval"| MKD on Ivanishvili

The MKD law firm releases a statement on Bidzina Ivanishvili's case. The statement notes that the firm has offered the Swiss media an article about Ivanishvili's financial dispute with Credit Suisse for a month without success.

We offer the statement unchanged:

"Mr. Ivanishvili's recent statement, in which he expressed his opinion on a number of current issues, said that the necessary clarifications on the current dispute with the Swiss banking group Credit Suisse will be made by a team of lawyers.

Therefore, we would like to inform the public of several aspects of the ongoing dispute.

Let's start by mentioning the unsuccessful attempt to publish our material in the Swiss media. It has practically been a month since we proposed our version of the problem in the form of an article to several publications in Switzerland, but we have heard nothing from any of them. It makes us think even more, if we take into consideration the seriousness of the problem, which is related to the backbone bank of the country, one of the flagships of its financial and banking system. Here we find that the only response to our attempt, albeit indirect, was from Mr. Bernard Audenal, a journalist for the Swiss investigative group Tamedia on the Radio Liberty website, who questioned the information we announced about the media. In the above interview, he outlined his position on the issue, followed by our proposal and willingness to facilitate an independent and impartial investigation of the actions of Credit Suisse by the journalist. This offer is still on the table, but to no avail.

At the same time we are aware of the relevance of the dispute between the banking group and Mr. Ivanishvili and the various aspects related to it, we intend to address the Parliament of the Swiss Confederation, the parliamentary factions and the major political groups, as well as "FINMA" - the country's financial supervisory authority, in an extraordinary and isolated manner. The need for an appeal stems from the high public interest in the dispute, as well as the difficult situation in which the Credit Suisse banking group finds itself. As in the case of the Swiss media, here too we express our full willingness to cooperate with Swiss politicians and the relevant authorities in the country.

In addition to the above, we would like to inform you that we are considering publishing key correspondence with the bank and its trusts. This intention is motivated by high public interest. Moreover, if the correspondence is published, the public will appreciate and see firsthand how unheard of and unprecedented it is for a bank to restrict access to its own assets. With the same actions, it is also obvious that the management of the bank is deliberately in the mode of reputational and financial misconduct, which it demonstrates in the case of Mr. Ivanishvili. Moreover, by this step we are already showing the public that all our claims and assessments are not made up, but are based on concrete facts and circumstances. At the same time this step will serve as a warning to those who are considering or may consider doing business with Credit Suisse in the future.

So far we have talked a lot about the restrictions imposed by the bank's trust structures, which will concern Mr. Ivanishvili's access to and disposal of his own assets. In this context, it should be noted that the amount surviving from the crime committed against Mr. Ivanishvili at Credit Suisse was transferred to another Swiss bank, but due to the ongoing litigation and the restriction in changing the person responsible for managing the amount, the amount remained with Credit Suisse under the trust (a trust company located in the jurisdiction of Guernsey Island). Consequently, the amount is not in dispute in Bermuda, Singapore or Switzerland. Therefore, under all law, the beneficiary is fully entitled to manage it. The beneficiary was denied access to such money saved from crime as of March 4, 2022, and only one month later, on April 4, was the amount transferred, and since April, despite his continuous requests, pleas and instructions, access has been completely denied. Due to unprecedented irregularities on the part of the trust in the banking structure and direct action against the interests of the beneficiary, a lawsuit has already been filed in the Guernsey courts in order to establish the liability of the trust company.

We will also report on a second trust company (which is based in the jurisdiction of Singapore), which is also in the Credit Suisse structure, and Mr. Ivanishvili's money under its management is in Credit Suisse (and not in another Swiss bank). The said trust structure and managed funds were suspended at the request of the trust pending resolution of the ongoing dispute in Bermuda. When the first stage of the dispute was concluded, the bank itself acknowledged and confirmed that the amount was free and that Mr. Ivanishvili should be able to manage the amount held by the trust. Despite the fact that Mr. Ivanishvili exercised his right and demanded the handling of the released money, the trust has been unreasonably refraining from handing over the money for two months, although it is not daring to refuse to the end, a direct refusal would be so unreasonable.

It is anticipated that a further lawsuit will be filed against said trust in Singapore to establish the trust's liability and restore the beneficiary's violated rights.

Overall, it is clear that the trusts' signature under Credit Suisse is "consistent." Yes, they consistently ignore the beneficiary's interests and act diametrically opposed to what they should be doing.

In all the above-mentioned cases, Mr. Ivanishvili intends to firmly and to the end resolve the issue of legal responsibility of the bank trusts. This process has started and will continue.

Regarding the artificial restrictions imposed on Mr. Ivanishvili by the trusts named in this statement, we would like to clarify the following once again: The assets owned by Mr. Ivanishvili in the accounts under the trusts have nothing to do with it. with multi-million lawsuits against the Credit Suisse banking group in Bermuda, in Singapore and in Switzerland itself. The public here is also fully informed of the success we have had and are having in Bermuda; And the positive expectation we have with the ongoing dispute in Singapore over damages.

Of course, we will continue to provide the public with up-to-date information on these and other matters," the statement reads.