Abramovich’s wealth revealed by judge

The news that Roman Abramovich (pictured) has sacked 15 members of his staff at Chelsea FC - and that manager Luiz Felipe Scolari has been told he must sell players if he wants to buy any new ones in the January transfer window – may come as a surprise to Justice Christopher Clarke. In a ruling made in London’s High Court last week, Clarke described Abramovich's involvement with Chelsea as a "hobby and a leisure interest ... It is not a business investment". Well, the financial crisis appears to have changed all that: Abramovich is reported to have lost as much as £12bn from his estimated £23bn fortune, mostly due to the collapse of the Russian stock market which has fallen by 70 per cent since May.

Judge Clarke’s comment accompanied a ruling, published in the Guardian today, in which he threw out a £2.5bn legal claim against Abramovich brought by a Russian oil company on the grounds that Abramovich was neither resident nor domiciled in Britain. Writes the Judge: "Abramovich is a billionaire. His overall wealth is said to be such that the £30m that he spent on [property in Knightsbridge] represents less than 0.5 per cent of his estimated net worth. He spends more time in Russia than anywhere else [57 days last year] and his business and personal interests are focused on Russia. Virtually all of the business associates with whom he is said to have dealt in these proceedings are Russian."

To underpin the detailed legal argument, the judge delved into the tycoon's private life, listing a host of multi-million-pound properties, yachts and planes to demonstrate the global nature of his business empire. Clarke said that seven years ago Abramovich had owned "a chateau in France, some real estate in England and, elsewhere, a yacht, a plane and a helicopter". Fast-forward to 2008 and his empire has expanded. Said Clarke: "[His assets are now] worth hundreds of millions of dollars, with properties acquired and renovated in the UK, France, Sardinia, the US and St Barts in the Caribbean, and Chelsea FC."

Among his homes, three of four multi-million-pound properties in the UK were given to his ex-wife, Irina, as part of their divorce settlement last year. At one address in Lowndes Square, Knightsbridge, the court heard that the Russian has bought "eight or nine flats" which he reportedly plans to turn into a £150m house with bullet- and blast-proof windows and separate housing for staff and bodyguards.

But the oligarch's London properties are just the tip of his international holdings. The ruling revealed that outside Britain Abramovich also owns two ski chalets in Colorado, a villa in St Barts, a French chateau, as well as the former home of the Russian leader Leonid Brezhnev in Moscow.

Abramovich has a hectic schedule, flitting between Russia, Britain and Europe. In 2007, he spent an average of just over a day and a half at a time in the UK, with his longest stay stretching to 11 days, during which he attended four football matches. As well as describing Abramovich's involvement with Chelsea as a "hobby", he pointed out that "the sums that Mr Abramovich has given to the club far exceed any return that could possibly be expected".

The report also confirmed that Abramovich was in the process of building the largest private yacht ever made. As reported here, the 550ft Eclipse will be ready for delivery late next year. Or at least that was the idea.