Latest news with #Fabergé
Yahoo
19 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
The Maker of Fabergé Eggs Has Been Sold to a Tech Investor
"Hearst Magazines and Yahoo may earn commission or revenue on some items through these links." A tech entrepreneur has acquired Fabergé, the historic luxury brand famous for its ornate jeweled eggs, in a $50 million deal. Technology investor Sergei Mosunov, a Russian national, purchased the company through his U.S.-based investment firm, SMG Capital, more than 10 years after UK-based miner Gemfields acquired Fabergé. Under the agreement, Gemfields will receive $45 million when the sale closes later this month and the remaining $5 million through quarterly royalty payments. Founded by jeweler Peter Carl Fabergé in St. Petersburg, the company created gem-encrusted eggs for Russian emperors Alexander III and Nicholas II between 1885 and 1916. The surviving eggs continue to sell for millions at auctions when they do pop up. The record-holder is the Rothschild Clock Egg, which in 2007 sold for £8.9 million (approximately $18.5 million at the exchange rate at the time). In 2004, Russian billionaire Viktor Vekselberg bought nine imperial eggs from the Forbes family for more than $90 million, endowing him with one of the largest private collections of Fabergé eggs. Today, Fabergé also makes more modern luxury products like jewelry, including engagement rings and wedding bands, and high-end watches. But continuing to make Fabergé eggs are still the cash cows. A Guilloché enamel strawberry surprise egg, for example, retails for approximately $74,000. Mosunov told the Financial Times that it is 'a great honor for me to become the custodian of such an outstanding and globally recognized brand.' He also said that he plans to direct the company to continue its focus on newer products like watches and jewelry. You Might Also Like 12 Weekend Getaway Spas For Every Type of Occasion 13 Beauty Tools to Up Your At-Home Facial Game Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Forbes
20 hours ago
- Business
- Forbes
Gemfields Sells Historic Fabergé Brand For $50 Million To SMG Capital
Gemfields said Monday it has signed an agreement to sell its entire interest in wholly owned Fabergé to SMG Capital LLC for $50 million. Under the agreement, $45 million will be paid to Gemfields on completion of the sale, expected on August 28. The remaining $5 million will be paid through quarterly royalty payments at a rate of 8% of Fabergé's revenue, Gemfields said in a statement. The sale is not expected to be subject to regulatory or any other approval processes. Fabergé is one of the world's most renowned luxury brands with a celebrated history in artistry and craftsmanship. It was founded in 1842 in Saint Petersburg, Russia, by Gustav Fabergé, and transformed by Peter Carl Fabergé in 1882. The firm was renowned for designing elaborate, jewel-encrusted Fabergé eggs for Russian emperors, as well as a range of other high-quality, intricate objets d'art. The House of Fabergé was nationalized in 1918 following the Bolsheviks revolution. The family left Russia and settled in different European countries. The Fabergé brand name was considered valuable by family members several companies and was highly contested for many years. London-based Gemfields is a mining company specializing in emeralds from Zambia and rubies from Mozambique. The company bought Fabergé in 2013 for $142 million from the private equity company Pallinghurst as a vehicle to promote colored gems from its mines. It put Fabergé up for sale in December, when political unrest in Mozambique prompted it to temporarily freeze operations at its ruby mine. The sale followed a strategic review of Fabergé by Gemfields. 'With the sale of Fabergé and the discontinuance of other non-core projects, Gemfields is now a more streamlined and focused investment proposition with a strengthened balance sheet,' Gemfields said in a statement. The company added that proceeds from the sale will provide additional working capital while the company is involved in running a new processing plant at Montepuez Ruby Mining in Mozambique and an expansion in mining at Kagem in Zambia, which was suspended during the first half of 2025. 'Having initiated our strategic review of Fabergé in response to the considerable challenges Gemfields started facing in Q4 2024, today's sale marks the end of an era for us,' said Sean Gilbertson, Group CEO of Gemfields. 'Fabergé has played a key role in raising the profile of the colored gemstones mined by Gemfields and we will certainly miss its marketing leverage and star power.' SMG Capital is a U.S.-based investment company specializing in 'luxury brands and innovative businesses with strong heritage.' It is controlled by Sergei Mosunov who describes himself on his LinkedIn profile as a 'serial entrepreneur and venture investor with a deep focus on frontier technologies.' Mosunov said in the same statement that Fabergé will continue to focus on jewelry, accessories and timepieces. 'It is a great honor for me to become the custodian of such an outstanding and globally recognized brand. Fabergé's unique heritage, with ties to Russia, England, France and the USA, opens significant opportunities for further strengthening its position in the global luxury market and expanding its international presence,' Mosunov said. 'We look forward immensely to providing exceptional service to Fabergé's existing retail and wholesale customers, and to warmly welcoming new brand aficionados.'
Forbes
a day ago
- Business
- Forbes
Gemfields Sells Historic Fabergé Brand For $450 Million To SMG Capital
Gemfields said Monday it has signed an agreement to sell its entire interest in wholly owned Fabergé to SMG Capital LLC for $450 million. Under the agreement, $45 million will be paid to Gemfields on completion of the sale, expected on August 28. The remaining $5 million will be paid through quarterly royalty payments at a rate of 8% of Fabergé's revenue, Gemfields said in a statement. The sale is not expected to be subject to regulatory or any other approval processes. Fabergé is one of the world's most renowned luxury brands with a celebrated history in artistry and craftsmanship. It was founded in 1842 in Saint Petersburg, Russia, by Gustav Fabergé, and transformed by Peter Carl Fabergé in 1882. The firm was renowned for designing elaborate, jewel-encrusted Fabergé eggs for Russian emperors, as well as a range of other high-quality, intricate objets d'art. The House of Fabergé was nationalized in 1918 following the Bolsheviks revolution. The family left Russia and settled in different European countries. The Fabergé brand name was considered valuable by family members several companies and was highly contested for many years. London-based Gemfields is a mining company specializing in emeralds from Zambia and rubies from Mozambique. The company bought Fabergé in 2013 for $142 million from the private equity company Pallinghurst as a vehicle to promote colored gems from its mines. It put Fabergé up for sale in December, when political unrest in Mozambique prompted it to temporarily freeze operations at its ruby mine. The sale followed a strategic review of Fabergé by Gemfields. 'With the sale of Fabergé and the discontinuance of other non-core projects, Gemfields is now a more streamlined and focused investment proposition with a strengthened balance sheet,' Gemfields said in a statement. The company added that proceeds from the sale will provide additional working capital while the company is involved in running a new processing plant at Montepuez Ruby Mining in Mozambique and an expansion in mining at Kagem in Zambia, which was suspended during the first half of 2025. 'Having initiated our strategic review of Fabergé in response to the considerable challenges Gemfields started facing in Q4 2024, today's sale marks the end of an era for us,' said Sean Gilbertson, Group CEO of Gemfields. 'Fabergé has played a key role in raising the profile of the colored gemstones mined by Gemfields and we will certainly miss its marketing leverage and star power.' SMG Capital is a U.S.-based investment company specializing in 'luxury brands and innovative businesses with strong heritage.' It is controlled by Sergei Mosunov who describes himself on his LinkedIn profile as a 'serial entrepreneur and venture investor with a deep focus on frontier technologies.' Mosunov said in the same statement that Fabergé will continue to focus on jewelry, accessories and timepieces. 'It is a great honor for me to become the custodian of such an outstanding and globally recognized brand. Fabergé's unique heritage, with ties to Russia, England, France and the USA, opens significant opportunities for further strengthening its position in the global luxury market and expanding its international presence,' Mosunov said. 'We look forward immensely to providing exceptional service to Fabergé's existing retail and wholesale customers, and to warmly welcoming new brand aficionados.'
Forbes
a day ago
- Business
- Forbes
Fabergé Sold To U.S. Company For $50 Million: What To Know About Fabergé Eggs
Fabergé, the jeweler most known for its famously intricate Russian Easter eggs, has been sold for $50 million by a British mining company to an American tech investor who says he plans to expand its international presence. The star piece of Viktor Vekselberg's collection, a $24 millions Fabergé "Coronation Egg" from 1897, is displayed at an exhibition in Moscow in 2004. AFP via Getty Images Gemfields, a colored gemstone miner listed on the London stock exchange, sold the fabled brand to tech entrepreneur Sergei Mosunov's U.S. company SMG Capital. Gemfields will receive $45 million when the deal closes later this month, and the remaining $5 million through quarterly royalty payments. The company said it will use the money from the sale to help fund its mining operations for rubies in Mozambique and emeralds in Zambia. Sean Gilbertson, the chief executive of Gemfields, said the company would miss the "marketing leverage and star power" that came from owning Fabergé, despite the fact the brand has struggled in recent years amid a downturn in the luxury goods market. Fabergé has been one of the most renowned jewelers in the world for almost 200 years but has seen revenue fall in recent years—it reported revenues of $13.4 million in 2024, down from $15.7 million the previous year and $17.6 million in 2022. Get Forbes Breaking News Text Alerts: We're launching text message alerts so you'll always know the biggest stories shaping the day's headlines. Text 'Alerts' to (201) 335-0739 or sign up here : The Apple Blossom Easter Egg, part of the Fabergé collection. Getty Images 'Fabergé's unique heritage, with ties to Russia, England, France and the USA, opens significant opportunities for further strengthening its position in the global luxury market and expanding its international presence,' Mosunov, a Russian national based in the U.K., said in a statement. 'We feel a deep sense of responsibility and incredible inspiration for the work ahead." Key Background The House of Fabergé jewelry company was founded in 1842 in St. Petersburg, Russia, by Gustav Fabergé. His son, Peter Carl Fabergé, was commissioned by Emperor Alexander III in 1885 to create an extravagant Easter gift for his wife, Empress Maria Feodorovna, and the famous Fabergé eggs were born. Known as "First Hen," the original product is made of gold and coated with white enamel, with a gold hen set with ruby eyes hidden inside. The emperor continued to have them made each year, reportedly giving Fabergé complete creative freedom, and 50 were ultimately made for the Russian Imperial Family, known as the "Imperial Eggs." Nineteen other eggs were made for the aristocracy and other elites. When the Romanov family fell during the Russian Revolution of 1917, the 50 Imperial Eggs were scattered all over the world, and some remain lost to this day. The eggs were crafted from gold or silver and encrusted with diamonds, rubies, emeralds, sapphires and other precious stones. They often included hidden items inside, like a miniature Trans-Siberian Railway train made of gold or a tiny, working replica of the Imperial coach used in Nicholas II's coronation. Today, Fabergé makes fine jewelry and egg objects inspired by the original eggs. They're priced starting at $60,000. Big Number 7. That's how many Imperial Easter Eggs are still missing. Eight were missing until 2014, when a buyer at a Midwestern flea market bought one for about $14,000. Kieran McCarthy, a London antiques dealer, told PBS News an anonymous buyer purchased the egg with hopes of making a small profit reselling it for its gold content. It was then authenticated as one of the real eggs. It features a Vacheron Constantin watch and sits atop a jeweled gold stand. A Faberge Egg on display in Moscow, Russia. Getty Images The most expensive egg is known as the Third Imperial Easter Egg, which was made in 1887. It has a solid gold case covered in sapphires and diamonds and houses a women's watch with diamond-set gold hands. It was once valued at $33 million and is owned by an anonymous private collector. Who Owns Fabergé Eggs? Billionaire Russian businessman Viktor Vekselberg owns 15 Fabergé Easter Eggs, making him the largest private collector in the world. Vekselberg bought nine Imperial Eggs from the Forbes media family, at the time the world's largest private collection, in 2004 for just over $100 million. He also owns two Kelch, eggs made for Russian nobleman Alexander Ferdinandovich Kelch, and four other eggs. At the time of his purchase from the Forbes family, he said the collection represented 'perhaps the most significant example of our cultural heritage outside Russia. This is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to give back to my country one of its most revered treasures." Vekselberg's eggs are on display at the Fabergé Museum in St. Petersburg. The British royal family also owns three Imperial Eggs, originally purchased by King George V and Queen Mary, King Charles's great-grandparents. Forbes Valuation Vekselberg is worth an estimated $9.4 million as of Monday, making him the 328th-richest person in the world. He is a Ukrainian-born aluminum baron who made his first million selling scrap copper from worn-out cables and later turned several medium-size aluminum smelters and bauxite mines into Sual Holding in 1996. He later made his fortune in oil. His $120 million superyacht, Tango, was seized by Spanish police and the FBI in Palma de Mallorca in April 2022. Further Reading Forbes Jewels, Eggs and Empires: The Story Of Forbes And Faberge By Abram Brown
IOL News
a day ago
- Business
- IOL News
Gemfields Group sells Fabergé stake to SMG Capital for R889 million
An employee displays a jewel egg called "The Dedication of Faberge", which displays a portrait of legendary artist-jeweller Peter Carl Faberge and costs about $60 000. Gemfields has sold the iconic Faberge brand to SMG Capital for $50 million. Image: File Image African emerald, ruby, and sapphire mining company Gemfields Group has sold its stake in the iconic luxury brand Fabergé to SMG Capital for $50 million (about R889.4m). "Having initiated our strategic review of Fabergé in response to the considerable challenges Gemfields started facing in the fourth quarter of 2024, today's sale marks the end of an era for us,' said Gemfields Group CEO Sean Gilbertson in a statement. 'Fabergé has played a key role in raising the profile of the coloured gemstones mined by Gemfields, and we will certainly miss its marketing leverage and star power,' he added. Of the total sum, $45m was payable to Gemfields by the buyer on completion of the sale, which was expected on August 28, 2025. The remaining $5m was payable by way of quarterly royalty payments at a rate of 8% of Fabergé's revenue. Fabergé is one of the world's most renowned names in luxury, underscored by a well-documented heritage. The brand sells jewellery and objets d'art through its website, boutiques, and via international wholesale partners. The sale concludes Gemfields' strategic review in respect of Fabergé, which was first announced in December 2024 and then was also paused to facilitate Gemfields' rights issue that was completed on June 13, 2025. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ 'With the sale of Fabergé and the discontinuance of other non-core projects, Gemfields is now a more streamlined and focused investment proposition with a strengthened balance sheet,' said Gilbertson. The sale proceeds would provide additional working capital while the new processing plant at Montepuez Ruby Mining in Mozambique was operationalised, and mining at Kagem in Zambia was progressively expanded, having been suspended during the first half of 2025. Gilbertson said brands as iconic and beautiful as Fabergé did not change hands very often. SMG Capital CEO Sergei Mosunov said Fabergé's unique heritage, with ties to Russia, England, France, and the US, opened significant opportunities to further strengthen its position in the global luxury market and expand its international presence. Fabergé would continue to focus on jewellery, accessories, and timepieces. SMG Capital is a US-based investment company owned by Sergei Mosunov. Mosunov is a tech entrepreneur and venture capitalist. Through SMG Capital, Mosunov invests in luxury brands and innovative businesses with strong heritage and global growth potential. Mosunov's other interests span optics, photonics, artificial intelligence, biotech, and foundational models. Gemfields' share price gained 0.74% to R1.36 on the JSE Monday afternoon; a year ago, the share price was higher at R2.47. BUSINESS REPORT
