PARIS (Reuters) -A lawyer for LVMH owner Bernard Arnault said on Saturday that a transaction under investigation in France involving him was carried out in full respect of the law.
The Paris public prosecutor's office confirmed on Friday that it is investigating financial transactions involving Arnault and Russian businessman Nikolai Sarkisov.
Le Monde, citing the French finance ministry's anti-money laundering unit Tracfin, reported on Thursday that Sarkisov had acquired real estate at a luxury Alpine resort via a complex transaction in which Arnault, through one of his companies, had provided a loan.
"The operation allowing the extension of the Cheval Blanc hotel in Courcheval was perfectly known about and was carried out in full respect of the law," lawyer Jacqueline Laffont said in a statement to Reuters.
"Media coverage of these leaks and the insinuations that have followed has made it necessary to respond. These allegations are as absurd as they are baseless."
(Reporting by Mimosa Spencer; writing by Leigh Thomas; editing by Christina Fincher)
