On October 28, 2013, the Chairman of Sotheby's Russia emailed the Managing Director to request a date to meet with Mr. Baltser in Moscow.[1] He responded, "sure but not before I have heard your convincing arguments as to how we protect our position re 'his' clients!"[2] The Chairman of Sotheby's Russia responded referencing his October 15, 2013 email of positive points and concerns and noted "I saw [Mr. Baltser] last week with [the Baltser Account Representative] and he has agreed to reveal the names of his clients."[3]
iv. Sotheby's Declined Mr. Baltser's Business Proposal
Sotheby's corporate headquarters in New York ultimately decided not to sign an agreement with Mr. Baltser.[4] The Chairman of Sotheby's Russia told the Subcommittee that one of the reasons Sotheby's declined Mr. Baltser's business proposal was due to concern over his undisclosed clients.[5] The concerns extended beyond the identity of his clients to their potential to manipulate market prices by coordinating their bids at Sotheby's auctions.[6] He also explained that Sotheby's wanted to have more control over the transactions by directing them to occur directly with Sotheby's, and Mr. Baltser's proposal overall was more advantageous for Mr. Baltser than Sotheby's.[7]
Even though Sotheby's declined Mr. Baltser's proposal, Mr. Baltser continued to bid in auctions and purchase art from the auction house. The Chairman of Sotheby's Russia explained the only difference was that Sotheby's declined Mr. Baltser's business proposal to create a direct cable for broadcasting high quality images of items being auctioned by Sotheby's into Mr. Baltser's private art club.[8]
c. Mr. Baltser Purchased Art with Funds Traced to Rotenberg-linked Shell Companies
The evidence indicates that the Rotenbergs used Mr. Baltser as their art adviser and agent both before and after the imposition of U.S. sanctions in March 2014. Each purchase followed the same pattern. Mr. Baltser purchased the art and took title either through Steamort or later, his own company BALTZER LLP. Then, one of the shell companies highlighted above (Highland Business or Highland Ventures) would wire funds to Steamort to pay for the piece of art. Prior to U.S.
- ↑ SOT-018624.
- ↑ Id.
- ↑ Id.
- ↑ SOT-201809-11; SOT-01893; Subcommittee interview of the Deputy Chairman of Sotheby's Europe and Chairman of Sotheby's Russia (May 30, 2019).
- ↑ Subcommittee interview of the Deputy Chairman of Sotheby's Europe and Chairman of Sotheby's Russia (May 30, 2019).
- ↑ Id.
- ↑ Id.
- ↑ Id.
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