La Leopolda - Villefranche Sur Mer | Real Estate Guide Villa Leopolda, the mansion. Everybody talks about it!
Then later in 1916, his nephew and heir, King Albert I, turned the Villa Leopolda into a hospital for officers wounded during the First World War. Later, the villa was purchased by the famous Agnelli family (founders of Fiat). It soon became notorious for jet set parties attracting celebrities like Ronald Reagan, Frank Sinatra and others. The estate is so big; it requires 50 full time gardeners. The grounds cover 20 acres of garden and visitors can stroll amongst 1,200 olive, orange, lemon and cypress trees. The new Russian super-rich have been quietly buying up large properties on the Côte d’Azur in recent years, but previous sale prices have never exceeded €200 million. The highest recorded sale to date is the £100 million paid by Indian steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal for a mansion in Kensington Palace Gardens last year. The unnamed Russian billionaire has apparently paid almost four times as much for the Villa Leopolda.
La Leopolda is situated half way between Nice and Monaco. It looks across the Villefranche bay at Cap Ferrat, which has become one of the world’s most sought-after pieces of real estate. Not so long ago the local newspaper Nice-Matin cited legal sources and stated that 60 of the villas or mansions on Cap Ferrat are now owned by Russians.  Back to top.
On 18 August 2008, an official at Mikhail Prokhorov’s Onexim Group denied that the billionaire was close to buying the legendary Villa Leopolda on the French Riviera. Mikhail Prokhorov himself denies buying the world's costliest villa: La Leopolda. Prokhorov's spokesman said the magnate was not behind the deal and said his boss would not do business in France until authorities apologise for briefly detaining him in a prostitution probe last year in the sky resort of Courchevel. "Before the conflict with French authorities is settled and before he gets an apology from the French side, neither Onexim nor Prokhorov himself would do any business in France," said Sergei Chernitsyn, referring to the metal tycoon's investment vehicle, Onexim Holdings.
In January 2007 it was believed that Muscovite call girls were being flown to Courchevel to "entertain" the hundreds of super-rich businessman who stay at the resort each January for the Russian New Year. Mr Prokhorov was arrested at his hotel along with 25 others. Detectives had carried out an investigation suggesting that prostitutes had been procured for guests. Those held for questioning included several Russian businessmen and eight women in their twenties who said they were models accompanying Mr Prokhorov. At the time Mr Prokhorov said the scandal had caused "immense damage" to his international image. The unmarried mining tycoon and Roman Abramovich, Russia's third richest man and the owner of English soccer club Chelsea, regularly make headlines in Russian tabloids, which link them with exotic, big-ticket purchases around the world. Sources close to Abramovich have also denied he was behind the purchase of Villa Leopolda but both French and Russian media insist the transaction involved a Russian billionaire. The sale, if confirmed, would put the Leopolda estate at the top of Forbes magazine's most expensive homes list, ahead of a California house once owned by publishing magnate William Randolph Hearst, and a Romanian castle where Vlad the Impaler was imprisoned.  Back to top.
 Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov consolidates assets (Please click on the Play Button above and be patient, the video may take a minute to load. It is hosted on You Tube.) Exclusive intv. with Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov (Please click on the Play Button above and be patient, the video may take a minute to load. It is hosted on You Tube.) Mikhail Prokhorov is born on May 3rd, 1965. He is a Russian self-made billionaire and oligarch. He made his name in the financial sector and went on to become one of Russia's leading industrialists in the precious metals sector. Mikhail Prokhorov made his estimated net worth US$22 billion fortune during the economic free-for-all in Russia in the 1990’s, when businessmen bought up parts of Soviet industry at a fraction of their real value. He is the 24th richest man in the world according to Forbes magazine's list of the World's Richest People in 2008.
He is the former chairman of Norilsk Nickel, the world's largest producer of nickel and palladium, and the current chairman of Polyus Gold, Russia's largest gold producer. In May 2007, Prokohorov launched a US$17 billion private investment fund, Onexim Group, focused on the development of nanotechnology, including hydrogen fuel cells, as well as other high-technology projects and non-ferrous and precious metals mining.
Prokhorov is largely credited with transforming Norilsk from an inefficient conglomerate into one of the largest and most profitable natural resource corporations in the world. After selling many of its non-mining assets, he moved to modernize a complicated, expensive business venture which required icebreakers to transport metal over the frozen Arctic region. Prokhorov invested in an innovative Finnish freighter that did not require icebreakers. Norilsk is headquartered in the Siberian city of the same name. Environmental and labor conditions are harsh there, and pollution remains a problem; Prokhorov has invested heavily in pollution control. He has also converted Norilsk Nickel's gold-mining concerns into the US$8.5 billion corporation Gold, Russia’s largest gold producer, of which he is chairman of the board. Other Activities
He gives financial support to CSKA Moscow's basketball, hockey and football clubs, and is a member of the Supreme Council of the Sport Russia organisation. In August 2006 he was awarded the Order of Friendship for his significant contribution to the growth of Russia’s economic potential, when the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, signed an order for the granting of state honours on August 18, 2006. Reputation and Controversy Mikhail Prokhorov is a bachelor known throughout the world and especially in Russia for his lavish lifestyle. He was satirized on a Russian TV commercial for his love of travelling the world in a private jet in the company of beautiful women. He is a keen sportsman and takes an active interest in basketball, kickboxing, track athletics and skiing.
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