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VERTIGO Yacht – Breathtaking 52 Meter Superyacht

The VERTIGO yacht (previously named Victory), is a 52.0m motor yacht built by Greek yard Golden Yachts in 2007.

Throughout the years, this superyacht has been refitted and renamed several times. 

VERTIGO Yacht Interior

The VERTIGO yacht interior was styled by Giorgio Vafiadis, who decided to go with a Venetian-inspired theme using materials like lustrous marble. 

Her interior is influenced by classic Italian design featuring a nude creamy color scheme with wooden paneling and velvet seatings. 

She has Roman-style statutes, oil paintings, and classic artwork to decorate the interior along with plenty of natural light.

Her spacious open decks offer guests the opportunity to enjoy alfresco dining while enjoying the sea breeze aromas.

She was built to comfortably accommodate 12 guests in seven flexible cabins, comprising one master suite, one VIP suite, two double cabins, and three twin cabins. 

VERTIGO can host 11 crew members, including the experienced captain, Alexis Georgitsis. 

The master suite has its own private lounge while all the staterooms have their own theatre system and en suite bathroom facilities. 

VERTIGO offers a jacuzzi, spa tube, air-conditioning, gym, WIFI, satellite TV, and sky lounge with a bar and entertainment area. Her sundeck has sun loungers, a bar, and a retractable hard top.

She is equipped with several toys including wave runners, waterskis, windsurfers, kayaks, bikes, sea bobs, dive compressors, paddle boards, snorkeling, fishing equipment, and wakeboards.

VICTORY Yacht Exterior

The VERTIGO yacht features exterior design by Studio Vafiadis and naval architecture by Lamda Nafs Shipyards. 

It has an aluminum superstructure and a semi-displacement hull made out of steel. 

Additionally, she is fitted with Naiad zero-speed stabilizers to give guests extra comfort while at anchor. 

She has three tenders including a Castoldi Jet Tender, an Intrepid Tender, and a Williams Tender Webber.

VICTORY Yacht Specifications

The VERTIGO yacht is powered by two MTU diesel engines giving her a cruising speed of 14 knots and a top speed of 17 knots with a range of 7,000 nautical miles. 

She has a beam of 9.0m, a draft of 2.8m, and a gross tonnage of 498. She can carry 14,230 liters of fresh water and has a fuel capacity of 95,900 liters. 

The VERTIGO yacht was built to comply with the American Bureau of Shipping specifications.

She is the 8th largest yacht built by Gold Yachts and one of the largest yachts in the world. 

She sails under the Malta flag and is based in the Arabian Gulf and the Mediterranean waters all year until she’s ready for her next charter. 

Her cruising regions may vary depending on the season, but some of her locations are United Arab Emirates, Croatia, France, Italy, Greece, Malta, Monaco, Dubai, Mykonos, and The Balearics, among others.

From May to September, she goes from 180,000 to 220,000 EUR per week plus expenses. However, during the winter season, the starting rate is 155,000 EUR.

According to some sources she was last sold in 2019 by Vassilis Fotilas at Fraser in an in-house deal. The owner’s identity remains unknown. 

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Vertigo is a custom sailing yacht launched in 2011 by Alloy Yachts, in New Zealand.

Established in the early 1980s, the 100% New Zealand owned Alloy Yachts is a builder of high-quality sailing and motor yachts driven by a quest for excellence.

Vertigo measures 67.19 metres in length, with a max draft of 5.00 metres and a beam of 12.53 metres. She has a gross tonnage of 837 tonnes.

Vertigo has an aluminium hull with an aluminium superstructure.

The internationally acclaimed naval architect and yacht designer Philippe Briand made his name designing award-winning sailing yachts (www.philippebriand.com) and building on that experience has led him to create a revolutionary range of motor yachts: Vitruvius Yachts.

Her interior design is by Christian Liaigre.

Vertigo also features naval architecture by Alloy Yachts.

Performance and Capabilities

Vertigo has a fuel capacity of 64,000 litres, and a water capacity of 13,900 litres.

Accommodation

Vertigo accommodates up to 12 guests in 6 cabins.

Other Specifications

Vertigo has a hull NB of AY 41.

Vertigo is a Lloyds Register class yacht.

• Yacht Builder Alloy Yachts No profile available
• Naval Architect Alloy Yachts No profile available
• Exterior Designer Philippe Briand No profile available
• Interior Designer Christian Liaigre No profile available

Yacht Specs

Other alloy yachts, related news.

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Questions for Investigators Trying to Unravel Mystery of Luxury Yacht’s Sinking

The investigators searching for answers about the shipwreck, leaving seven dead, face questions about extreme weather and possible human error or problems with the yacht itself.

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By Alan Yuhas

More than 180 feet long, with a mast towering about 240 feet and a keel that could be lowered for greater stability, the Bayesian luxury yacht did not, in the eyes of its maker, have the vulnerabilities of a ship that would easily sink.

“It drives me insane,” Giovanni Costantino, the chief executive of the Italian Sea Group, which in 2022 bought the company that made the ship, said after its wreck last week. “Following all the proper procedures, that boat is unsinkable.”

But the $40 million sailing yacht sank within minutes and with fatal results: seven dead, including the British technology billionaire Michael Lynch, his teenage daughter, four of Mr. Lynch’s friends and a member of the crew. Fifteen people, including the captain, escaped on a lifeboat.

Mr. Lynch had invited family, friends and part of his legal team on a cruise in the Mediterranean to celebrate his acquittal in June of fraud charges tied to the sale of his company to the tech giant Hewlett-Packard.

The Italian authorities have opened a manslaughter investigation, searching for answers from the survivors, the manufacturer and the wreck itself. They face a range of questions and possible factors.

An ‘earthquake’ in the sky?

When the Bayesian sank around 4 a.m. on Aug. 19, the waters in its area, about half a mile off the Sicilian port of Porticello, were transformed by an extremely sudden and violent storm, according to fishermen, a captain in the area and meteorologists.

But what kind of storm is still a mystery, compounded by the fact that a sailing schooner anchored nearby did not have its own disaster. Also unclear is whether the crew was aware that the Italian authorities had issued general warnings about bad weather the night before.

Karsten Börner, the captain of the nearby passenger ship, said he’d had to steady his ship during “really violent” winds . During the storm, he said, the Bayesian seemed to disappear behind his ship.

Severe lightning and strong gusts were registered by the Italian Air Force’s Center for Aerospace Meteorology and Climatology, according to Attilio Di Diodato, its director. “It was very intense and brief in duration,” he said.

The yacht, he said, had most likely been hit by a fierce downburst — a blast of powerful wind surging down during a thunderstorm. His agency put out rough-sea warnings the previous evening, alerting sailors about possible storms.

Locals have said the winds “felt like an earthquake.” A fisherman in Porticello said that he had seen a flare go off in the early-morning hours. His brother ventured to the site once the weather had calmed about 20 minutes later, he said, finding only floating cushions.

The Italian authorities have so far declined to say whether investigators had seen any structural damage to the hull or other parts of the ship.

Open hatches or doors?

The boat executive, Mr. Costantino, has argued that the Bayesian was an extremely safe vessel that could list even to 75 degrees without capsizing. His company, the Italian Sea Group, in 2022 bought the yacht’s manufacturer, Perini Navi, which launched the ship in 2008.

Mr. Costantino said that if some of the hatches on the side and in the stern, or some of the deck doors, had been open, the boat could have taken on water and sunk. Standard procedure in such storms, he said, would be to switch on the engine, lift the anchor and turn the boat into the wind, lowering the keel for extra stability, closing doors and gathering the guests in the main hall inside the deck.

At a news conference on Saturday, almost a week after the sinking, investigators said the yacht had sunk at an angle , with its stern — where the heavy engine was — having gone down first. The wreck was found lying on its right side at the bottom of a bay, about 165 feet deep.

12 guests occupied the yacht’s six cabins. There were also 10 crew members.

Open hatches, doors and cabin windows could have let in water during a storm, according to the manufacturer.

Open hatches, doors and

cabin windows could

have let in water

during a storm,

according to the

manufacturer.

Source: Superyacht Times, YachtCharterFleet, MarineTraffic

By Veronica Penney

Water pouring into open hatches or doors could have contributed to the sinking, experts say, but that on its own may not account for the speed at which such a large boat vanished underwater.

Asked about the hatches at the news conference, the authorities declined to comment on whether they had been found open at the wreck.

The authorities have also not specified whether the boat had been anchored, whether it was under power at the time or whether its sails had been unfurled.

A retracted keel?

The Bayesian had a keel — the fin-like structure beneath a boat that can help stabilize it — that could be retracted or extended, according to its manufacturer. On some yachts, keels can be raised to let the large vessel dock in shallower water, and extended downward to help keep a boat level.

But like the hatches, the status of the keel alone may not explain why a large ship sank with such precipitous speed. Investigators have not disclosed what divers may have seen at the wreck, aside from saying divers had faced obstacles like furnishings and electrical wiring in tight quarters. Officials want to raise the wreck to better examine it, a process that may take weeks.

Human error?

Ambrogio Cartosio, the prosecutor in charge of the case, said at the news conference that it was “plausible” crimes had been committed, but that investigators had not zeroed in on any potential suspects.

“There could be responsibilities of the captain only,” he said. “There could be responsibilities of the whole crew. There could be responsibilities of the boat makers. Or there could be responsibilities of those who were in charge of surveilling the boat.”

It remains unclear what kind of emergency training or preparation took place before the disaster, or what kind of coordination there was during it. So far, none of the surviving crew members have made a public statement about what happened the night the ship sank.

Prosecutors said they want to ask more questions of the captain and crew, who have been in a Sicilian hotel with other survivors. They said that neither alcohol nor drug tests had been performed on crew members, and that they have been allowed to leave Italy.

Prosecutors also said they were also investigating why the captain, an experienced sailor, left the sinking boat while some passengers were still on board.

Besides possible manslaughter charges, the authorities are investigating the possibility of a negligently caused shipwreck.

The bodies of five passengers were found in one cabin, on the left side of the yacht, the authorities said. The five were most likely trying to flee to the higher side of the boat and were probably sleeping when the boat started to sink, they said.

67 meter Sailing Superyacht Vertigo by Alloy Yachts

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Written by Mike Smith

Alloy yachts is progressing well, and as planned, in the building of sailing yacht Vertigo which is a massive 67 meter (67.2m / 220ft) long ketch rigged superyacht. The new yacht is scheduled to be officially launched at the Auckland, New Zealand shipyard at the end of 2010. Superyacht Vertigo is a Philippe Briand designed luxury yacht and the hull project was previously known by build number AY41. The yacht is now in the fitting process and has taken the name “Vertigo”. Construction of the Vertigo yacht began around two years ago in October of 2008 and the new build boat hull and fitting has been moving steadily at the experienced shipyard, almost under a veil of secrecy, until details have now begun to properly surface.

The Vertigo luxury yacht will be an important private sailing yacht launch on a worldwide scale, and the vessel is also certainly another milestone for the New Zealand large superyacht builder, Alloy. Alloy Yachts also launched their then largest yacht, the new sailing yacht “Kokomo” (AY39) at the end of 2009 which is an impressive 58.40 meters in length overall. With S/Y Vertigo the Auckland, New Zealand yacht builder shipyard is now set to break this benchmark again in late 2010, in terms of size and luxury, with the launch and delivery of the 67 m ketch, slightly less than one year down the track.

Sailing Yacht Vertigo - as designed by Philippe Briand and launched by Alloy Yachts in 2010

From Alloy Yachts:

Alloy Yachts is proud to finally announce to the world the project that has kept everyone guessing for quite some time. In October 2008, Alloy Yachts began building the largest sailing yacht in their yard to date, the 220’ Briand ketch simply known as AY41. The interior design of the yacht is by the uber cool French designer, Christian Liaigre who’s brief from the client was for the yacht to feel “Urban at Sea”. Phillippe Briand’s brief from the client was to make this design a performance sailing yacht capable of world cruising. AY41 (Vertigo) will be launched in late 2010.

Yacht Vertigo - Profile Rendering

Sailing Yacht Vertigo’s Designers:

Philippe Briand enjoys a very successful track record in designing relatively fast, sleek and good looking performance type cruising yachts. In this tradition, luxury yacht Vertigo has easy on the eye and streamlined lines from bow to stern. This grace has been accomplished despite her impressive size and the fact that a spacious flybridge superstructure has been incorporated snugly into her lines. This is helped by her vast waterline length and efficient sail plan which utilises two masts to reduce constraints on mast height (for the Panama Canal) and other rig management inefficiencies. Essentially, superyacht Vertigo is a massive private sailing yacht and due consideration has been given by her designer to allow her design to maximize and optimize the use of the wind, hence her designed sail plan. All in all, superyacht Vertigo is destined to be a powerful boat under sail and her sailing performance will no doubt impress at any superyacht rally or yacht racing regattas.

Indeed, she is expected to reach near 20 knots in 20 knots of true wind, however, actual sea trials later in 2010 or early 2011 will confirm theses figures officially. Under motor she will be able to make an impressive speed of 17 knots with a range of near 4,000 nautical miles at 12 knots.

Sailing Yacht Vertigo - Foredeck and Flybridge View

The Vertigo yacht has an interior which was designed by Christian Liaigre. Christian Liaigre is a French interior designer who is strongly associated with furniture design. He respects and promotes the principles of understatement and simplicity and yet is known to be able to interweave a touch of poetry and natural material in his work when appropriate. His design work is considered to “have generated a creative spirit based on the use of materials such as wood weathered by the sea and the sand, as well as fine leathers worked according to the traditions of saddle making.”

The luxury yacht’s interior design colour palette called for a light and airy atmosphere using walnuts and expanses of white surfaces with darkened sand blasted woods. This background allows for the custom designed furniture to blend seamlessly with the yacht owner’s considerations and preferences. And indeed the superstructure design of yacht Vertigo (Philippe Briand) has been covered with windows which enables a life spring of natural light to illuminate the Liaigre designed interior.

A Design Rendering of Superyacht VERTIGO - AY41

The Yacht’s Luxury Accommodations:

The owner of Vertigo has a wonderful master cabin which is located to aft of amidships. In addition, four guest rooms are gathered around the core of the boat, with crew accommodation positioned further forward towards her bow. Te crew area component is large enough to accommodate for up to 11 members. Moving further to aft of the Master cabin is a lazarette garage which is to be used for the storage and maintenance of water toys, along with other peripheral marine equipment. Likewise, at the other end of the huge private sailing superyacht, in the bow, locker styled pockets have been designed and built to house a pair of 6 meter yacht tenders. From there the tenders can be deployed and launched from the deck of the bow, without reducing space and functionality of the luxury yacht’s ever treasured water interface – her aft transom area.

Alloy Yachts, one of New Zealand’s (and the World’s) most noteworthy and well respected superyacht ship building yards, is well on course to finishing and launching their largest build to date – yacht Vertigo is set to officially launch in December 2010 and she will then be delivered early in 2011 to her eager owners. It will be very interesting to see how the yacht is judged if she enters any world superyacht awards.

Superyacht Vertigo - The Profile Rendering of the Sail Plan of the Mighty Ketch Sailing Yacht

The Specifications of Vertigo Yacht (AY41) :

Measurements:

LOA 67.2m (220ft) LWL 61.0m (200ft) Beam 12.53m (41.1ft) Draft 5.05m (16.5ft)

Yacht Design and Builders:

BUILDER Alloy Yachts DESIGNER Phillipe Briand Yacht Design INTERIOR DESIGN Christian Liaigre Interior Design CLASSIFICATION Lloyds Register

Sails North Sails Sail Area 5330m² Mast/Boom/Rigging Southern Spars New Zealand & EC6+ Furlers Reckmann Winches Alloy Yachts Custom

Machinery and Engineering:

Main Engines 2 x Caterpillar C32 DI-TTA V12, 1400 BHP each @ 2300 RPM (1044 bkW) Bow/Stern thrusters Alloy Yachts Vertical Hyd and American Bow Thrusters 200HP Trac 28 Generators 2 x Caterpillar C9 200kW Fuel 64,000 litres approx Water 13,900 litres approx

Please contact CharterWorld - the luxury yacht charter specialist - for more on superyacht news item "67 meter Sailing Superyacht Vertigo by Alloy Yachts".

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Mike Lynch yacht sinking latest: Manslaughter probe to look at crew responsibility as tributes paid to Hannah

Ambrogio cartosio, public prosecutor of nearby town termini imerese, said no specific suspects have been named so far, article bookmarked.

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A manslaughter investigation has been launched following the deaths of  seven people onboard the Bayesian  superyacht  which sank off the coast of  Sicily .

Italian public prosecutor Ambrogio Cartosio, from nearby town Termini Imerese, said his office has opened an initial investigation into manslaughter and negligent  shipwreck . No specific suspects have been named, so far.

At a press conference, prosecutors were asked about the Bayesian crew’s responsibilities considering all but one survived. 

Prosecutors said they were “concentrating on this particular aspect”.

They want to “discover how much they knew and to what extent all the people [passengers] were warned”.

It comes as tributes have poured in for Hannah Lynch, who  died with her father on the superyacht .

Sasha Murray, chief stewardess of the Bayesian who is understood to have been rescued from the yacht described Hannah as a “diamond in a sea of stars”.

“What most people may not have seen was the extraordinarily strong, deep and loving relationship she shared with her parents, whom she adored more than anything,” she added.

Morgan Stanley chairman Jonathan Bloomer, his wife Judith Bloomer, Clifford Chance lawyer Christopher Morvillo and his wife Neda Morvillo also died on the boat.

Ex-court appointed guard says Mike Lynch ‘became more like a family’

A court-appointed armed guard, tasked with ensuring Mike Lynch did not abscond while facing fraud charges, has paid tribute to the tech mogul, saying the security team “became less of a detail and more like a family”.

Rolo Igno also described “the memory of a beautiful soul” in Mr Lynch’s daughter Hannah.

Mr Igno said he had the “privilege” of spending “almost every waking moment” with Mr Lynch while he was in custody in San Francisco, describing the detail as unlike any other he had ever worked and one that was “life changing”.

“As an executive protection agent, the number one rule is simple, don’t ever get close to the principal,” he said.

“They aren’t your friends, they’re a client and the relationship is strictly professional. But with Mike, that didn’t fly with him and for me that rule quickly dissolved.”

Watch: Moment Bayesian yacht engulfed by storm

Full report: manslaughter investigation launched after mike lynch’s bayesian superyacht sinks.

Read the full report below:

Manslaughter investigation launched after Mike Lynch’s Bayesian superyacht sinks

British technology entrepreneur Mike Lynch and his 18-year-old daughter Hannah were among seven people that died after the yacht sank

Mike Lynch net worth: How the billionaire made his money

Mike Lynch was frequently described as the Bill Gates of Britain for founding Autonomy – one of the biggest software firms on the planet

Giant masts, moon pools and pole explorer pods: How the world of yachts got supersized

Giant masts, moon pools and explorer pods: How the world of yachts got supersized

The sinking of Mike Lynch’s ‘unsinkable’ sailing vessel was not only a heartbreaking tragedy, but also gave us a rare glimpse into the superyachting fraternity. Here, Boat International’s Lucy Dunn looks at a group that is both secretive and innovative, and asks how such a high-spec sailing yacht could have sunk at all...

Tribute to ‘genius’ storyteller Mike Lynch

Susannah Gurdun, a close family friend of the Lynch’s from Suffolk, shared a series of heartfelt stories about Mike Lynch and who he was beyond being one of Britain’s biggest tech moguls.

Ms Gurdun told of his “thrilling ability” to explain difficult and complicated concepts in a way people could easily understand.

His wife, Angela Bacares, and his daughters were telling Ms Gurdun of his ability to “conjure beautiful stories out of thin air”.

The following evening, Mr Lynch told a story as the dinner plates were cleared about a hero, who was the same age as Ms Gurdun’s son, embarking on adventures in search of treasure. She called it “magical”.

She added that she was not surprised to learn that Hannah had begun showing “serious literary promise”.

Tributes to a ‘brave’ and ‘selfless’ friend who died on Bayesian

Friends of Recaldo “Rick” Thomas have paid tribute to their ‘brave’ and ‘selfless’ friend who was found in the water near the superyacht Bayesian.

“Rick could have jumped off and survived, I have no doubt about that. But he wouldn’t have left people on board and just swum away,” his friend Gareth Williams told  The Sunday Times .

“I read that the first mate was quite young, Rick would have said to him, ‘Get off the boat, man, I am here, I got this.’ That’s just who he was.”

He added: “He had this infectious smile and a sultry, baritone voice. He was the type of person you could sit in a room with — no TV, no music playing, and just be. You didn’t have to say a word. You just enjoy his company.”

Who died on the Bayesian yacht?

British technology tycoon Mike Lynch and his 18-year-old daughter Hannah were among the people initially unaccounted for after his superyacht Bayesian sank in a storm off the coast of Sicily in the early hours of Monday.

On Saturday morning, Italian authorities announced a manslaughter investigation had been launched into the deaths of seven people, after a five-day operation that has seen divers carefully navigating their way into the cabin bedrooms.

Mr Lynch and  Hannah  were among the seven people who died after the Bayesian  superyacht  sank near Porticello at about 5am local time on Monday.

Morgan Stanley chairman Jonathan Bloomer, his wife Judith Bloomer, Clifford Chance lawyer Christopher Morvillo and his wife Neda Morvillo also died.

Recaldo Thomas was the  superyacht ’s chef and the first person whose death was confirmed.

What is a downburst?

Officials said the superyacht had been hit by a downburst and the Italian officials said they would be looking at how it could affect one vehicle and not other nearby vessels, according to the translation of the conference.

A downburst is an intense burst of wind at ground level emenating from the strong downdraft of a thunderstorm; the wind often blows radially from a point source, as opposed to the rotating winds associated with a tornado.

Downbursts usually last just a few minutes, and can be particularly dangerous for aviation.

They have been blamed for a number of air crashes over the years, although the risk tends to be well forecast by meteorologists allowing pilots to avoid them.

NYC lawyer who died in yacht disaster wrote haunting LinkedIn post weeks before

Christopher Morvillo formerly worked as a prosecutor investigating the September 11 terror attacks

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Sinking of a super yacht adds to questions billionaire Mike Lynch wanted to put behind him

I t was a sunny August morning when software entrepreneur Mike Lynch, 59, gathered ten of his closest friends along with his wife and daughter on the dock of Porto di Milazzo, on the Northern coast of Sicily. They had come to celebrate his freedom. Only months before, several of the guests played crucial roles in persuading a San Francisco jury to acquit Lynch of federal charges related to the sale of his software firm Autonomy to Hewlett-Packard for $11 billion. 

Five days after the yacht left port, Lynch, his daughter, four guests, and a hired chef were dead in the Mediterranean Sea after a storm flooded the ship. The drowned included the chairman of Morgan Stanley International, a star witness at Lynch’s trial, as well as one of Lynch’s lead defense attorneys. Among the survivors were a former Autonomy exec who went on to become a partner at Lynch’s venture capital firm, a second member of his defense team, and his wife, who reportedly owns nearly all his fortune. The same day of the drowning, U.K. news outlets reported that Lynch’s co-defendant in the fraud trial, Stephen Chamberlain, who had also been acquitted, had been fatally run over by a car as he was out jogging—a shocking coincidence.

Less than a week after the tragedy, there are far more questions than answers. Did the yacht named Bayesian—an homage to a statistical theorem for predicting future outcomes—simply fall victim to a terrible storm? How did most of the crew and a few passengers escape, and why couldn’t they reach Lynch and the six others who did not make it out? Italian officials are looking into manslaughter charges, but it’s not yet clear who they may have in their crosshairs. Giovanni Costantino, who runs The Italian Sea Group that owns Perini Navi, the Italian maker of the yacht, had harsh words for the crew, who he blames. "This is the mistake that cries out for vengeance," he told Reuters .

There are also huge questions swirling around the business ventures of the man dubbed the “British Bill Gates.” While the Bayesian excursion was to serve as a celebration of Lynch’s acquittal on all charges in the U.S.—where he had spent months under house arrest—the reality is that his legal troubles were far from over. In a January 2022 civil trial, the UK’s High Court found that HPE had “substantially succeeded” in proving that Autonomy leaders had fraudulently made it look like the company was earning more revenue than it was. In 2019 Autonomy’s CFO was convicted of 16 counts and sentenced to five years in prison. At this time, the UK case is in a holding pattern as the judge determines what damages are owed to HPE. (The company’s spokesperson Adam Bauer says HPE is, “saddened by this tragic event, and our thoughts are with the families and friends of all those who lost their lives.”)

But Lynch’s passing also looms over Invoke Capital, the venture firm he founded in 2011 and whose managing partner—Charlotte Golunski—survived the yacht disaster and saved her 1-year old baby. One of Invoke’s most prominent bets was a 2013 seed stage investment in Darktrace, a cybersecurity firm on whose board Lynch sat until 2018. Darktrace has developed a reputation as a sleek AI cybersecurity startup with ties to spy agencies like MI5 and the U.S. National Security Agency. It also became the target of short-sellers who in 2023 expressed doubt over Darktrace’s financial filings—the same sort of allegations that plagued Lynch’s Autonomy. 

Darktrace insists that the shortseller’s allegations were baseless, and they say an EY audit it commissioned showed this to be the case. In April Darktrace received a $5.3 billion acquisition offer from the giant private equity firm, Thoma Bravo. The deal, which Fortune reported will likely go forward despite Lynch’s death, stood to help rehabilitate Lynch’s business reputation. As of August 14, he and his wife collectively owned 3.21% of the company, which would be worth some $170 million upon the deal’s completion. Invoke Capital has not responded to multiple requests for comment and Darktrace declined comment.

Following his U.S. acquittal, Lynch was pleased enough with the state of things that he had begun celebrating weeks before the yacht party. In the days following the not-guilty verdict, Lynch, his wife, Stephen Chamberlain and his wife, the attorney Chris Morvillo—who drowned on Bayesian—and 20 other lawyers gathered at a restaurant at a hotel near the San Francisco courthouse.

Brian Heberlig, an attorney at Steptoe who gave the closing argument in Lynch’s trial, recalls that Morvillo gave a moving toast, telling those assembled that the trial was more than just a job, but one of their life’s works. “He really was a brilliant man,” Heberlig told Fortune , fighting back tears as he remembered Lynch. “And he ran his legal defense the same way I imagine he ran Autonomy. He let the experts do their jobs, while still having a strong grasp on the material. As he used to say, ‘Let the brain surgeons do the surgery.’”

That night was the last time Heberlig ever saw Lynch or Morvillo.

A 'virtually unsinkable' boat

The sailing party departed August 14—five days before the storm—and was comprised of 12 guests and 10 crew. The Bayesian was one of the biggest yachts of its kind. Its first stop was a cluster of small islands off the coast of Sicily. Then it jetted across the sea to the Sicilian town of Cefalu, before putting down anchor for the final time on the coast of Palermo, a favorite getaway for the rich and famous, and a former haunt for the mafia.

Lynch’s wife, Angela Bacares, who reportedly held the couple’s entire $1.1 billion fortune, was jolted awake on August 18 as the boat began to tilt. Glass from a shattered window exploded across the deck, according to reports, cutting her feet as she ran to investigate.

Black and white security  footage  appears to show the outline of what is believed to be the 184-foot sailing yacht, which used call sign 2ICB8, slowly disappearing behind a thicker and thicker veil of rain. Nearby villagers and fishermen say they saw a sea tornado, called a waterspout. Soon after, the yacht lay on the ocean floor.

Theories are swirling about why the yacht sank. One holds that a bay door was left open in the storm, causing the ship to flood and sink in minutes. Another holds that the Bayesian’s 246-foot tall aluminum mast—one of the tallest in the world— broke in the wind and took the boat down with it.

Most news reports say the yacht sank almost instantly, but the CEO of the company that bought the boat’s maker after it went bankrupt in 2021 disputes that. In a Financial Times report, he called the boat “virtually unsinkable,” and says that it dragged its anchor for 16 minutes before it sank. 

During those fateful moments, a far older nearby yacht, the Sir Robert Baden Powell, built in 1957, was drifting on a similar course as the Bayesian and not only survived, but came to help. Some onboard saw a red flare shooting across the rainy sky—an emergency signal from those who had fled the doomed yacht, drawing the attention to a life raft filled with 15 of the 22 passengers.

Passenger Golunski, 35, who helped run Autonomy the first year it was at HP, described holding her one-year old daughter Sophia, as she screamed for help. One of Lynch’s most trusted employees, Golunski was a founding partner at Invoke Capital, the London-based firm that backed Darktrace. Lynch’s wife Bacares was also in the life raft along with Clifford Chance lawyer Ayla Ronald, 36, who reportedly texted to her father: “there are deaths.”

The lifeboat survivors were soon plucked from the sea while the Bayesian came to its current resting place 50 meters below the surface. Over the course of the next 72 hours, a team of scuba divers from the Guardia Costiera and specially trained cave divers from the Vigili del Fuoco, the local fire department, used boats and a helicopter to triangulate the yacht’s position. The divers, working in bursts of 8 to 12 minutes, searched the Bayesian’s six guest suites, master suite, multiple living areas, and dining room.

The body of the yacht’s chef, Recaldo Thomas, was the first to be found, floating on the water’s surface. On Wednesday, two days after the wreck, four more bodies were discovered, and on Thursday a fifth. Among them were Lynch and Chris Morvillo of the prestigious law firm Clifford Chance, who had made the controversial decision to have Lynch testify, and questioned him on the stand right before he was acquitted. The others discovered were Morvillo’s wife, Neda, as well as the Morgan Stanley banker and key witness, Jonathan Bloomer, who had been a former executive director at Autonomy, and his wife Judy. The body of Lynch's 18-year-old daughter, Hannah, was pulled from the sea on Friday.

The U.K. Maritime and Coastguard Agency tells Fortune it is in contact with the Italian authorities but would not provide further information. The UK’s Foreign Office told Fortune it is providing “consular support to a number of British nationals and their families…and are in contact with the local authorities.”

More questions than answers

Even as loved ones and the survivors begin to come to terms with the human toll of the tragedy, the business world has begun assessing Lynch’s complicated past, and his many business dealings. 

Lynch was born of modest means to a nurse and firefighter in a suburb of London. From an early age he showed a proclivity towards technology and a fiery determination. He studied Natural Sciences at Cambridge, then returned for a PhD in artificial neural networks, the building blocks of artificial intelligence. When he was still studying for his PhD, he started his first venture, Cambridge Neurodynamics, monetizing computerized fingerprint recognition, eventually evolving into Autonomy. 

Founded in 1996 with David Tabizel and Richard Gaunt, Autonomy used an early version of artificial intelligence to quickly scan what’s known as “unstructured data,” especially including language. Autonomy quickly became a darling of the UK’s fledgling tech scene, and it was seen as a crowning achievement when, in 2011, the company struck an $11 billion deal to be purchased by HP, now HPE. The deal, however, was quickly engulfed in scandal when a year later the new owner alleged accounting fraud and wrote down its investment by $8.8 billion.

Despite the baggage around Autonomy, Lynch continued to ride high in the tech world through his venture firm, Invoke Capital, which he founded in 2012. One of its most profitable investments was Darktrace, which he backed in 2013 and joined as a board member. By 2016 he told TechCrunch 60 employees from Autonomy were working at Invoke, that he’d raised a billion dollars to invest in startups, and that Darktrace was worth $500 million.

While fighting the legal battle over Autonomy and building Invoke, Lynch enjoyed the trappings of a mogul. The same year he announced his billion-dollar startup fund, he was sailing the Bayesian, worth an estimated $25 million. He reportedly also owned a $6 million, 69-acre Georgian manor.

By early 2020 Darktrace shared deep connections with Autonomy, including half of Darktrace’s board and six of its eight top executives. The following year Darktrace went public, soaring 40% above its pre-market value. But the victory lap was brief. In September 2022, an acquisition talk between private equity firm Thoma Bravo and Darktrace fell through , sending share prices tumbling. In early 2023, the short-selling firm Quintessential Capital Management published a 70-page report accusing Darktrace of similar misconduct that had sunk Autonomy.

“We are deeply skeptical about the validity of Darktrace’s financial statements,” the report read. Darktrace’s shares plunged as much as 17% after the report was published, though the company said at the time that the management team and board had “rigorous controls in place.” Darktrace hired EY to perform an audit, which stabilized its share price after the accounting firm found the company's earlier financial results did not need to be restated. Darktrace never publicly released the report, however, with a spokesperson saying at the time that it contained “commercially sensitive information.”

More recently, Darktrace’s CEO Poppy Gustafsson wrote in the firm’s Q4 trading report of “shareholders voting overwhelmingly in favour” of the acquisition, and added the company is “awaiting the conclusion of the remaining regulatory processes.”

Until very recently, Darktrace had sought to distance itself from Lynch and his VC firm. In December, shareholders passed a resolution that rejected Invoke executive Patrick Jacob's reappointment to its board. This April, Invoke lost the right to that same board seat when it was discovered its shares had fallen below the required 10% threshold. Nonetheless, in a memorial to Lynch, Darktrace CEO Poppy Gustafsson wrote : “Without Mike, there would be no Darktrace. We owe him so much.”

While the Italian authorities continue to investigate the crash site, one thing is certain: the swirl of legal and business battles that surrounded Lynch during his lifetime are likely to continue after his death. A local Italian news site reports that the public prosecutor's office in a nearby town, Termini Imerese, is looking into allegations of manslaughter surrounding the sunken boat. And two months before Lynch died, former UK secretary of state David Davis reportedly said he was working with Lynch to scrap U.S./U.K extradition agreements that allowed Lynch’s trial to happen in the first place. 

On Wednesday, August 21, Davis told GB News he would continue that fight in memory of Lynch. “We need to get a grip of this,” said Davis. “Mike, when he’d won his case, almost the first thing he did was ring me up and say, ‘we’re going to have to defeat this treaty, we’re going to have to overcome this treaty and get it changed for the better.'"

“I am looking forward to returning to the U.K. and getting back to what I love most: my family and innovating in my field,” Lynch said after the verdict.

Lynch’s desire to extend the legal fight even after his not-guilty verdict reflects the scrappiness he displayed throughout his life. This helped him ascend to the highest rungs of business and moguldom—but the success also came with a tenuous quality as questions about his business dealings dogged him for years. The not-guilty verdict and the pending Darktrace sale meant Lynch was in position to finally cast off that shadow. But now his ultimate legacy is poised to be tied forever to a mysterious and tragic hour on the Mediterranean Sea.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

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Liverpool FC owner’s £66 million superyacht docks in Aberdeen

The 66-metre-long vessel, which has an outdoor swimming pool and a helipad, has arrived in the Granite City.

A £66 million yacht belonging to the owner of Liverpool FC has docked in Aberdeen.

Elysian, a 66-metre-long vessel owned by John W Henry – majority shareholder for the Anfield club – appeared at Aberdeen Harbour on Saturday.

The vessel, which sails under the Cayman Islands flag, had departed from Leith in Edinburgh earlier in the day.

It is not known how long the yacht will stay in Aberdeen.

It comes after one of Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s yachts docked in Aberdeen earlier this year.

Elysian was built in Germany by Bremen-based company Lurssen Yachts.

Previously named Ester III, the luxury yacht was owned by Russian entrepreneur Georgy Bedzhamov.

However, Henry acquired it in 2016.

Superyacht has swimming pool, gym and helipad

Elysian ranks among the top five per cent of the world’s largest yachts, according to Boat International .

The superyacht has an outdoor swimming pool, a spa centre, a gym and a helipad among its features.

Mr Henry’s gem can accommodate up to 12 guests in six staterooms, and 17 crew members in separate quarters.

Who is Elysian superyacht owner John W Henry?

Henry is the founder of investment management firm John W Henry & Company.

The 74-year-old has been Liverpool FC’s majority shareholder since 2010, when Fenway Sports Group took over the club.

He’s also the principal owner of baseball club Boston Red Sox, hockey team Pittsburgh Penguins and American daily newspaper The Boston Globe.

According to Forbes, he has an estimated net worth of £3.86 billion.

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VERTIGO is a 51.94 m Motor Yacht, built in Greece by Lamda and delivered in 2007.

Her top speed is 17.5 kn and her cruising speed is 15.0 kn and her power comes from two MTU diesel engines. She can accommodate up to 14 guests in 7 staterooms, with 11 crew members. She has a gross tonnage of 498.0 GT and a 9.0 m beam.

She was designed by Studio Vafiadis , who also completed the naval architecture and designed the interior. Studio Vafiadis has designed 21 yachts, created the naval architecture for 1 yacht, and designed the interior of 27 yachts for yachts above 24 metres.

VERTIGO is in the top 10% by LOA in the world. She is one of 190 motor yachts in the 50-55m size range, and, compared to similarly sized motor yachts, her cruising speed is 0.94 kn above the average, and her top speed 0.48 kn above the average.

VERTIGO is currently sailing under the Malta flag, the 3rd most popular flag state for superyachts with a total of 1109 yachts registered. She is currently located at the superyacht marina D-Marin Zea Marina, in Greece, where she has been located for 1 week. For more information regarding VERTIGO's movements, find out more about BOATPro AIS .

Specifications

• Name: VERTIGO
• Previous Names: OPTASIA,PLOES,VICTORY,VICTORY V
• Yacht Type: Motor Yacht
• Builder: Lamda
• Naval Architect: Studio Vafiadis
• Exterior Designer: Studio Vafiadis
• Interior Designer: Studio Vafiadis
• Refits: 2019

Available for charter

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