Why Goldman Sachs Seized a 217-Foot Superyacht From One of Its Clients

Bank's high-net-worth lending gambit is paying off, but is not without a few wealthy deadbeats.

Why Goldman Sachs Seized a Client's 217-Foot Superyacht

A jacuzzi on the deck of 217-foot superyacht 'Natita' during the Superyacht Miami boat show at Island Gardens Deep Harbor in Biscayne Bay, Miami, Florida, on Thursday, Feb. 11, 2016. A month after the harbor opened, the docks have filled with $800 million of yachts jockeying for space. (Chris Goodney/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

By Will Levith

One Texas oil billionaire thought the normal rules of paying your debts didn’t apply—and then his bank came calling.

Per the Wall Street Journal, the billionaire in question was William Kallop, and his bank, Goldman Sachs. Of late, the bank has been making a mint on floating loans to wealthy clients, with collateral in the form of superyachts, priceless paintings, car collections, stakes in hedge funds, and wine collections.

But when Kallop couldn’t repay his loan, Goldman and the U.S. Marshals came calling, impounding his 217-foot luxury yacht, Natita, which includes a movie theater, helipad, and jacuzzi (as is seen in the image above).

“If you do [wealth lending] right, it’s a great business and clients will absolutely love you for it,” Bruce Holley, a partner at the Boston Consulting Group, told the Journal. “But there are a lot of ways to mess up.”

But a bank can’t really enjoy a boat; as the Journal notes, the Natita will likely be auctioned off to the highest bidder, in an attempt to make back some (if not all) of Goldman Sachs’ lost money.

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