The billionaire founder of one of Saudi Arabia's largest conglomerates said Thursday an order freezing $9.2 billion of his assets was lifted by a Cayman Islands court, in the latest twist in a legal battle in which another Saudi conglomerate alleges he defrauded it of billions of dollars. Saad Group founder Maan Al-Sanea said in an e-mailed statement that the court also ordered that Ahmad Hamad Al-Gosaibi and Brothers Co. (AHAB), cover his legal fees related to the asset freezing order. He also said the court would hold hearings to assess other potential damages. The order was yet another development in a legal battle waged in at least four jurisdictions and that began in 2009 between al-Sanea, a major HSBC stakeholder who is married to the al-Gosaibi patriarch, and AHAB. The Al-Gosaibi family, which controls AHAB, has maintained in several court cases that Al-Sanae essentially defrauded it of over $9 billion, much of it through its money remittance business, the Money Exchange. Al-Sanea has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing. At the height of the global financial crisis, both AHAB and Saad Group defaulted on an estimated $22 billion in loans that scores of banks are still struggling to recoup. AHAB in June had conceded a roughly $220 million lawsuit brought by five banks, including HSBC.
