Brad Pitt is seeking answers regarding who co-owns his French vineyard, after ex-wife Angelina Jolie’s interests were transferred to a hidden trust on the tax haven island of Jersey in the English Channel.
The Fight Club actor, 60, was taken aback when Jolie unexpectedly sold part of their beautiful Chateau Miraval house to Russian billionaire Yuri Shefler in 2021.
Financial documents obtained by the Mail reveal that the ultimate owner of the shares is a mysterious trust held by a business in which Shefler is not a stakeholder.
The bizarre economic arrangements make it tough to establish who is pulling the strings, but associates of Hollywood star Pitt claim he is desperate to find out.
The dispute takes the nasty long-running divorce drama between Pitt and Jolie on British soil for the first time.
The struggle for Chateau Miraval’s future, known as the War of the Rosé, has so far taken place in courtrooms in France, Luxembourg, and Los Angeles.
A source close to the actor said, “Brad wants Jersey to start providing answers.” He should have the right to know who has invested in his firm.
‘He has poured his heart and energy into Chateau Miraval and feels like the rug has been yanked out from under him. He is unsure who he is truly doing business with.
Chateau Miraval in Provence offers an award-winning rosé beloved among celebrities. Pitt and Jolie jointly owned the 1,300-acre estate, and they married in its 17th-century farmhouse in August 2014.
Following their dramatic split in 2016, Jolie sold her ownership in the company to Yuri Shefler’s Stoli Group. Pitt said she violated an agreement to give each other first refusal.
The Mail disclosed last month that Stoli had been stripped of some shares by a Luxembourg court, leaving Pitt as the dominant stakeholder.
Jersey structures are popular among those who seek to conceal their business operations while maintaining control over their assets.
Sanctioned Russians, such as former Chelsea FC owner Roman Abramovich, have previously employed them. In 2022, Jersey officials confiscated £7 billion worth of Abramovich’s assets.
Shefler, who has not been sanctioned, has insisted on becoming the trust’s beneficiary. However, well-placed individuals believe there is no clear business need to employ a private trust corporation to keep a portion of his empire that he could control in his own name.
A source said that the private trust structure is occasionally utilized to conceal the names of decision makers. Because of Jersey’s secrecy restrictions, Brad will never know for certain who he is doing business with or who is pulling the strings.