Attorney Roderich Schaetze: Elumeo SE Threatened by Massive Tax Impact - Expert Opinion Sees No "Arm's Length Principle" Between Group Subsidiaries

PR80696

BERLIN and CHANTHABURI, Thailand, Sept. 24, 2019 /PRNewswire＝KYODO JBN/--

- Germany and Thailand could reclaim EUR 17 million

- Possible tax evasion under German 370 AO

The financially troubled Berlin jewelry group elumeo SE may face back tax

claims totaling 17 million Euros. This assessment is the result of an expert

opinion commissioned by Ottoman Strategy Holdings (OSH) based on existing

contracts between elumeo SE and its subsidiaries as well as on the tax holiday

conditions, according with the Board of Investment, in Thailand. According to

these agreements, the German tax authorities are likely to make additional

claims for alleged profits of EUR 10 million, while the Thai government is

likely to make a further 7 million Euro for unfulfillment of the conditions of

the tax holiday granted to the Thai elumeo subsidiary PWK Juwellery Limited.

This tax assessment is devastating news for the shareholders Frankfurt

Performance Mangament AG (FPM) and Heliad Equity Partners and other elumeo

shareholders, who have so far supported the Chairman of the Board of Directors

of elumeo SE, Wolfgang Boyé. During the last shareholders meeting of elumeo,

following the news of criminal investigations for fraud, in both Germany and

Thailand against Wolfgang Boyé and Executive Directors Thomas Jarmuske and

Bernd Fischer OSH requested the appointment of a special auditor. The task of a

special auditor would have been to investigate the factors which led to social

distress at PWK in Thailand, caused by hundreds of workers being deprived of

their legal severance pay and salaries. More than that, OSH requested the

appointment of a special auditor to clarify the legality of Chariman Boye's

actions and the general status of the company. However, in spite of the

criminal investigations, lawsuits in the range of tens of millions of Euro

against the company, Raik Hoffman, representative of FPM pledged his total

trust and support in Boyé, voting against a perfectly normal, under these

circumstances, special audit.

The expert opinion exposes a web of complicated price transfer mechanism, tax

holidays, intermediary Hong Kong companies with no physical substance, unpaid

invoices, breach of the "arm length" principles, revolving loans to pay dividends

that exists only on paper, unfulfilled contracts, subordinations of debts of tens of

millions of EUR and setoff of dividends made only on paper.

It also indicates a strong likeness of major tax evasion under the German § 370 AO,

based on the existing Agreements between elumeo, Silverline Distribution Limited

(Hong Kong intermediary company) and PWK in Thailand, payments pattern and

Chairman Wolfgang Boye's own statements during the shareholders meetings of elumeo.

OSH will provide the expert opinion to the tax authorities in Germany and Thailand.

OSH will continue to pursue its legal ways of action in order to have a special

auditor appointed by a German Court, in spite of Frankfurt Performance

Management's vote against the legal clarification that would be generated by a

clear and full audit of this troubled company, which, under Wolfgang Boyé's

Chairmanship lost more than 96% of its share price and became involved into

major financial disputes and social unrest, affecting the life of hundreds of people.

At this point, OSH, as the initial investor in elumeo SE, operator of Juwelo TV, is greatly

saddened by the fact that under the actual management and with the support of other

minor shareholders as Frankfurt Performance Management AG (FPM), the company is

caught in a situation that could, very likely, lead to its insolvency, and continue to generate

a grave wave of legal problems, both civil and criminal, as well as major tax issues.

Until now, with no proof but erratic explanations, Chairman Boyé, denied all

these allegations. However, OSH is rising a very simple and legitimate question,

to the both, other shareholders and the market: "If such illegalities-related

conclusions are unfounded, why are Chairman Boyé and his supporters fighting

so hard against the appointment of a special auditor, which, in the case that there

were no illegalities committed, would just clear the company's and his own name?"

For further information:

Attorney Roderich Schaetze

SWM Treuhand AG

SchafflerstraB 8, 80333 Munchen, Germany

Phone: +49-89-2040026-20

E-mail: schaetze@schaetze.com

Source: Roderich Schätze