Singapore nets US$862,000 from first auction in money laundering case
The frenzied bidding is in sharp contrast to the lacklustre reception for luxury real estate tied to the same illicit network
The limited-edition yellow monogram leather piece, which was a collaboration between the luxury fashion house and the Japanese artist who recently died at 97, eventually went under the hammer for an eye-watering S$87,000. A flurry of 42 last-minute bids pushed the closing price to more than five times the auction house’s initial estimate of S$12,000 to S$16,000.
Conducted by auctioneer Hotlotz, the sale of the first tranche of 337 handbags and accessories from the high-profile money laundering case concluded on Sunday night. All of the items were sold and the total came in at more than S$1.1 million (US$862,000).
