Property owners at four U.S. luxury ski and golf resorts are suing Credit Suisse Group AG for $24 billion, accusing the Swiss bank of running a “loan-to-own” program that loaded the resorts up with debt so it could foreclose on their assets when the debt couldn’t be repaid.
Property owners at four U.S. luxury ski and golf resorts are suing Credit Suisse Group AG for $24 billion, accusing the Swiss bank of running a “loan-to-own” program that loaded the resorts up with debt so it could foreclose on their assets when the debt couldn’t be repaid.
L.J. Gibson and Beau Blixseth filed the lawsuit seeking class-action status on Sunday in a U.S. District Court in Idaho, seeking damages on behalf of more than 3,000 investors who purchased property and homes at the four developments known as Lake Las Vegas, Tamarack, Ginn Sur Mer and Yellowstone Club. All of the developments, financed by Credit Suisse, have been in default or under bankruptcy protection, causing “billions of dollars” of losses to their investors, the suit says.
The property owners claim they were hurt by Credit Suisse’s alleged program because the bank falsely promised to provide such amenities as golf courses, ski runs and lifts, restaurants, pools and trails. Also, the resorts weren’t run as promised “for the benefit of the homeowners and purchasers of lots of land,” the suit alleges.
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