MOSCOW, May 26 (RAPSI, Diana Gutsul) - Former wife of Norilsk Nickel CEO Vladimir Potanin, Natalya Potanina, has filed a suit with a Cyprus court on the attachment of his property, her representative Filipp Ryabchenko told RAPSI on Monday.

According to Ryabchenko, most of the family’s property formally belongs to offshore companies – specifically, the share portfolio of Norilsk Nickel is registered as the property of Cyprus companies even though it is widely known that Potanin is the actual owner. Ryabchenko says that “unfortunately, [Potanin] is not taking part in deoffshorization efforts”.

“We are also suing that the court seize the disputable property. Regardless of the court ruling on seizing the property, we hope to get an explanation from these Cypriote companies on the family’s property,” Ryabchenko concluded.

With a reported net worth of $14.3 billion, Potanin is listed by Forbes as the 58th wealthiest person in the world, and the seventh in Russia. His Forbes profile describes the billionaire as a self-made man who earned the bulk of his wealth in the metals industry.

Potanin filed for divorce in November with Moscow’s Presnensky District Magistrate Court.

On February 25, the Moscow court granted Potanin’s divorce claim, thus formalizing the couple’s split. The same day, it was revealed that Potanin had initiated asset-division proceedings in Moscow.