tranquility yacht; photo source @yachtcharterfleet.com
A superyacht once owned by Jho Low, a fugitive at the centre of Malaysia’s 1MDB financial scandal, has been put back on the market after a few months as a celebrity party venue.
The vessel, now named Tranquility, is being sold for US$200m, an increase of more than $70m on its previous price tag. It is currently owned by the Genting Group, a Malaysian conglomerate with business interests in real estate, hospitality, plantations and energy supply.
The firm bought the 91.5-metre yacht from the Malaysian government for $126m, which was about half its original purchase price, after it was seized by Indonesian authorities off the coast of Bali in 2018.
Previously named Equanimity, the yacht was owned by Malaysian businessman Low Taek Jho, 37, better known as Jho Low. He has been accused of masterminding the looting hundreds of millions of dollars from Malaysia’s sovereign wealth fund, 1MDB. Low is in hiding, believed by many to be in China. He has previously said that he has not broken any laws.
Former prime minister Najib Razak, 66, is currently on trial in Kuala Lumpur for 1MDB-related charges.
Tranquility typifies Low’s super-luxury, celebrity-packed lifestyle. It features a gym, massage room, grand piano, swimming pool, sauna and “beach club” section for socialising. Winch Design, an exclusive British firm, designed the interiors.
Before moving to make a sale profit on the vessel, Genting rented it to super-rich clients at a cost of $1.2m a week. US celebrity Kylie Jenner hired it for her birthday celebrations.
Before going into hiding, Low used his wealth to move in similar circles to the reality TV star. He became friends with Paris Hilton and mixed with Hollywood’s film industry elite. In 2018, the producers of Martin Scorsese’s hit film The Wolf of Wall Street paid back $60m to the US government after allegations the film was funded with money stolen from 1MDB.
In April this year, when Genting acquired the yacht, Low spoke through his publicist of his anger at its “bargain-basement” $126m sale price.
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