Russian billionaire sells over-the-top NYC penthouse for $34M — and the new owner wants to keep the gilded and onyx-clad decor intact
The sale, at the prestigious 15 Central Park West, also includes the furniture.
Yet, the ritzy residence — which boasts 24-karat ornaments in what can be characterized as an 'extreme-Versailles' style — once faced foreclosure.
It first hit the market for $65 million in 2023 as part of the Kogans' massive real estate sell-off following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Residents at the elite building include titans of industry as well as, in the past, artists and athletes like Sting and Alex Rodriguez. The buyer remains anonymous, hidden behind a shell company — for now.
Robert A.M. Stern famously designed the limestone building. But his firm also designed the penthouse, a source said. And the new buyer is hoping that the same team can 'refresh' the penthouse to keep it exactly the same, the source added.
The sale comes as Kogan is butting heads with Putin over ownership of the Domodedovo airport.
In January, Russian news outlet Vedomosti reported that Russian prosecutors filed a case against Kogan and Dmitry Kamenshchik, claiming they failed to renationalize the holding company that manages the facility.
It's not the first time the Russian government tried to take back control of the airport, which was privatized in 1997. In Russia, it's illegal for foreign entities to control assets deemed to be strategic to national security.
When it first hit the market for $65 million in 2023, the 15 Central Park West listing included a one-bedroom and a studio in the building. They are now slated to sell separately for less than $5 million, sources said.
For its part, the 40th-floor penthouse is a sprawling 5,398 square feet. It comes with four bedrooms, an elaborate home office that doubles as a screening room and 3½ bathrooms. Extravagant details include a giant malachite stone fireplace and large onyx tables, as well as a stained-glass door. There's also plenty of carved wood, custom floors and high-end finishes — not to mention a chef's kitchen and dazzling city views.
Kogan also recently sold his 7-acre Greenwich, Conn., estate for $10.4 million, as Gimme Shelter previously reported.
However, his palatial pad at the Plaza Hotel — that comes with a castle-like turret — is still on the market. Since February, the condo has been asking $23 million — down from the original $50 million ask, as Gimme also noted.
An additional one-bedroom apartment in the Plaza across the hall, No. 1008, is asking under $3 million. The listing broker for both apartments is Compass's Charlie Attias.
The Kogans also sold a penthouse in Israel for $33 million and a condo at 515 Park Ave. for $14.5 million, which had first listed for $25 million. In addition, they have another home in Israel that first listed for $259 million and is now asking a dramatically less $89 million, according to reports.
The listing broker for the 15 Central Park West penthouse, Douglas Elliman's Adam Rothman, declined to comment.
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In addition, the armed militias that served in the phony Luhansk and Donetsk 'People's Republics' were thrown at the front and suffered enormous losses. Whatever its exact size, the Donbas's overwhelmingly aged and impoverished population can hardly be the basis of an economic boom. And how many refugees will return? How many people will move there from other parts of Ukraine or Russia if and when peace is attained? The questions are largely rhetorical, especially as the Donbas is an environmental hell hole. According to the Conflict and Environment Observatory, the fighting since 2014 has 'created a risk of environmental emergencies and will leave a lasting legacy of groundwater contamination from flooded coal mines.' Moreover, 'following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, hundreds of environmentally sensitive sites have been caught up in the conflict.' The Donbas will also become the site of endless political instability. If Ukraine inherits the territory, pro-Russian elements, in cahoots with the Russian security services, are sure to stage provocations, assassinate local officials, sabotage plants and so on. If Russia keeps the Donbas, Ukraine is sure to engage in equally subversive activities. How fair and free elections could take place under such conditions is anybody's guess. Despite these similarities, there is one fundamental difference. Putin's fascist regime will thrive on repression and violence; Ukraine's democracy won't. Indeed, while Putin can crush whatever opposition he encounters, Ukraine will have to mollify and integrate it — a test it failed before 2014 and one that it is unlikely to pass after years of war. Will failing this test make Ukraine more or less likely to overcome existing hurdles and join the European Union and NATO? Again, the question is rhetorical. The Donbas's transformation into a permanent source of instability will have at least two negative consequences for Putin. It will divert Russia's coercive resources from other, equally unstable parts of the Russian Federation. It will also encourage some non-Russian regions — the north Caucasus comes immediately to mind — to press for greater autonomy and less Kremlin oversight. France and the German states fought for centuries over Alsace-Lorraine and the Rhineland. That made some sense, since both regions were economically, politically and socially developed. Not so the Donbas. It is a black hole and will remain so for years to come. For better or for worse, neither Ukraine nor Russia can just turn their backs on the territory without violating their constitutions and courting mass demonstrations. Of course, as far as Putin is concerned, a constitution is just a piece of paper. Even so, to abandon the Donbas would be to admit defeat and experience political suicide. Ditto for Ukraine and its president, Volodymyr Zelensky. If winning means losing, does losing mean winning? Regardless of how they answer that question and what the terms of a possible peace deal might be, Ukrainians may take some consolation from the fact that, thanks to Putin's heady territorial ambitions, Russia will be stuck with that black hole for years to come. Indeed, Russia itself will progressively come to resemble the Donbas. That could be Ukraine's greatest victory. Alexander J. Motyl is a professor of political science at Rutgers University-Newark. A specialist on Ukraine, Russia and the USSR, and on nationalism, revolutions, empires and theory, he is the author of 10 books of nonfiction, as well as 'Imperial Ends: The Decay, Collapse, and Revival of Empires' and 'Why Empires Reemerge: Imperial Collapse and Imperial Revival in Comparative Perspective.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. 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