Flamboyant German financier 'has private jet, artwork and vintage wine seized' in £60m bust-up

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Lars Windhorst (pictured with girlfriend Christine Barner) has a reputation for parties

A private jet owned by a controversial City financier is thought to have been seized in a legal row with one of his investors.

Court officials are also said to have confiscated wine and artwork from Lars Windhorst, who is locked in a £60million battle with business Romanello Financial Corp.

But the German – who was reported to be worth £320million in 2015 and has a reputation for throwing lavish parties – denies the claims.

Once the toast of Berlin with fans including former leader of Germany Chancellor Helmut Kohl, he moved to London eight years ago after going bankrupt and being handed a one-year suspended prison sentence for breach of trust.

The entrepreneur's business Sapinda invests in start-up companies and is run from an office in Savile Row, one of London's most prestigious streets.

Windhorst, 40, has a soundproofed office said to feature tabletop models of his Bombardier jet and 223ft luxury yacht, along with a sign reading 'just get it done'.

A patron of London's Serpentine Galleries of contemporary art, the boss is said to woo potential backers with his personal charm, trips to Formula One races and meetings on his yacht.

Sapinda's supporters have included major City companies such as Fidelity and Legal & General.

Until September last year, Labour grandee Lord Mandelson sat on the advisory board of his business.

But Sapinda and Windhorst have been locked in six lawsuits involving £200million of assets since March 2016.

The disputes – some of which have been settled – relate to claims that the business failed to pay agreed amounts to bond and shareholders. 

Belize-registered Romanello alleges that Windhorst agreed to buy back £67.8million of bonds from it, but instead has bought only £13.6million.

The complainant also says he failed to stick to the terms of a separate agreement involving German media company RNTS, since renamed Fyber.

Romanello is represented by lawyer Aidan O'Rourke of Quinn Emmanuel Urquhart & Sullivan.

He told the Financial Times assets including a jet, wine and artwork had been confiscated due to the dispute. However, Windhorst, disagreed and said that nothing had been confiscated.

He said: 'The problems have already been solved. We have settled our dispute with Romanello. Neither have accounts been frozen nor have objects been seized. Around 90pc of outstanding claims have been paid off.

'I assume that we will have the rest wrapped up by the end of this quarter.

'All matters will have been dealt with by the end of September at the latest.'