Sonja Kohn
Encyclopedia
Sonja Kohn is an Austria
n banker.
In the 1970s, with her husband Erwin Kohn, she started an import-export business and moved to Milan
, Italy.
In 1994 she founded the Bank Medici
in Vienna. One year later, she moved to New York. They lived in Monsey
, a large, ultraorthodox Jewish community. Increasingly orthodox, she covered her hair as is customary for traditionally orthodox women.
The Kohns founded a small brokerage firm, the Eurovaleur Inc. In New York City she became known as “Austria’s woman on Wall Street
.” Kohn only got into investing after staying home to raise her five children.
In 1990s, they moved back to Vienna. There, she cooperated with Gerhard Randa of Bank Austria
.
The Bank Medici
was relaunched in 2003 as an Aktiengesellschaft
. Sonja is shareholder of 75 percent and is head of the bank's supervising board.
She also was consultant of the Vienna Stock Exchange until 2006 and was member of the supervisory board of Italian Finlombardia bank.
. Kohn kept a low profile after the disclosure of the securities fraud
conducted by him either to hide from unhappy clients, or from embarrassment at being involved in the affair, or worse. She said in an e-mail dated 14 January 2009, to Bloomberg News, that she was as deceived by the “Madoff fraud” as anyone else. Madoff wasn’t a friend and didn’t confide in her, she wrote. She says she was a victim of a “fraud that destroyed lives, life savings and companies.” Following this, Bank Medici has decided on March 19, 2009 to wind down all banking business and to relinquish the banking license. On December 10, 2010, Kohn was sued by Irving H. Picard
, trustee of assets seized by the court from Bernard Madoff, for $19.6 billion. Picard claims that she funneled 'billions' of investor dollars to Madoff in return for $62 million in kickbacks; this is one of dozens of lawsuits filed against Madoff investors and alleged collaborators before the two-year statute of limitations required by US civil code ran out on December 11, 2010.
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n banker.
Biography
Sonja Kohn was born to Jewish refugees from Eastern Europe. She grew up in Vienna in a small Jewish community.In the 1970s, with her husband Erwin Kohn, she started an import-export business and moved to Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
, Italy.
In 1994 she founded the Bank Medici
Bank Medici
Bank Medici AG was a bank based in Vienna, Austria. It was founded in 1994 by banker Sonja Kohn and incorporated as a bank in 2003.Bank Medici's president and majority stakeholder is Sonja Kohn. Its main institutional shareholder is Bank Austria Creditanstalt, Austria's largest banking group...
in Vienna. One year later, she moved to New York. They lived in Monsey
Monsey, New York
Monsey is a hamlet , in the Town of Ramapo, Rockland County, New York, United States located north of the state of New Jersey; east of Suffern; south of Airmont and west of Nanuet...
, a large, ultraorthodox Jewish community. Increasingly orthodox, she covered her hair as is customary for traditionally orthodox women.
The Kohns founded a small brokerage firm, the Eurovaleur Inc. In New York City she became known as “Austria’s woman on Wall Street
Wall Street
Wall Street refers to the financial district of New York City, named after and centered on the eight-block-long street running from Broadway to South Street on the East River in Lower Manhattan. Over time, the term has become a metonym for the financial markets of the United States as a whole, or...
.” Kohn only got into investing after staying home to raise her five children.
In 1990s, they moved back to Vienna. There, she cooperated with Gerhard Randa of Bank Austria
Bank Austria
UniCredit Bank Austria AG is a Central and Eastern European bank, 96.35% owned by UniCredit Group.BA-CA's history goes as far back as 1855, the year the Creditanstalt was founded. In 1991, Zentralsparkasse und Kommerzialbank and Oesterreichische Laenderbank merged to form Bank Austria. In 1997,...
.
The Bank Medici
Bank Medici
Bank Medici AG was a bank based in Vienna, Austria. It was founded in 1994 by banker Sonja Kohn and incorporated as a bank in 2003.Bank Medici's president and majority stakeholder is Sonja Kohn. Its main institutional shareholder is Bank Austria Creditanstalt, Austria's largest banking group...
was relaunched in 2003 as an Aktiengesellschaft
Aktiengesellschaft
Aktiengesellschaft is a German term that refers to a corporation that is limited by shares, i.e. owned by shareholders, and may be traded on a stock market. The term is used in Germany, Austria and Switzerland...
. Sonja is shareholder of 75 percent and is head of the bank's supervising board.
She also was consultant of the Vienna Stock Exchange until 2006 and was member of the supervisory board of Italian Finlombardia bank.
Madoff connection
The Bank Medici directed funds from investors to Bernard MadoffBernard Madoff
Bernard Lawrence "Bernie" Madoff is a former American businessman, stockbroker, investment advisor, and financier. He is the former non-executive chairman of the NASDAQ stock market, and the admitted operator of a Ponzi scheme that is considered to be the largest financial fraud in U.S...
. Kohn kept a low profile after the disclosure of the securities fraud
Fraud
In criminal law, a fraud is an intentional deception made for personal gain or to damage another individual; the related adjective is fraudulent. The specific legal definition varies by legal jurisdiction. Fraud is a crime, and also a civil law violation...
conducted by him either to hide from unhappy clients, or from embarrassment at being involved in the affair, or worse. She said in an e-mail dated 14 January 2009, to Bloomberg News, that she was as deceived by the “Madoff fraud” as anyone else. Madoff wasn’t a friend and didn’t confide in her, she wrote. She says she was a victim of a “fraud that destroyed lives, life savings and companies.” Following this, Bank Medici has decided on March 19, 2009 to wind down all banking business and to relinquish the banking license. On December 10, 2010, Kohn was sued by Irving H. Picard
Irving Picard
Irving H. Picard is a partner in the law firm Baker Hostetler. He graduated from the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, with a B.S. degree , from Boston University School of Law with a J.D. degree , and from the New York University School of Law with an LL.M. degree in 1967, and was...
, trustee of assets seized by the court from Bernard Madoff, for $19.6 billion. Picard claims that she funneled 'billions' of investor dollars to Madoff in return for $62 million in kickbacks; this is one of dozens of lawsuits filed against Madoff investors and alleged collaborators before the two-year statute of limitations required by US civil code ran out on December 11, 2010.