- Paulson’s wife Jenny is suing him, claiming he hd millions in a secret trust during their two-decade marriage
- But he says her actions could cost their two daughters $2billion in inheritance
- The couple have been involved in an acrimonious divorce since 2021 that is still not settled, but Paulson has now got engaged to dietician Alina De Almeida, 35
Hedge fund mogul John Paulson has accused his estranged wife of trying to ‘rob’ their two daughters of their $2billion inheritance amid their bitter divorce battle, DailyMail.com can reveal.
Paulson, 68, is being sued by his ex-wife Jenny Zaharia, 55, over claims that he squirreled away millions in a ‘secret trust’ during their 21 years of marriage.
Paulson, who is worth $4.7billion, moved on with dietician Alina De Almeida shortly after splitting with Jenny, and recently hit the headlines for hosting a Trump fundraiser at his $110million mansion – where his 35-year-old fiancée showcased her massive new sparkler.
Lawyers for Paulson, who filed for divorce in 2021, told DailyMail.com that the mogul offered to settle the case and ‘remove future spouses and children as trust beneficiaries’, as well as ‘hundreds of millions of dollars’, which was rejected by his wife.
A new document obtained by DailyMail.com show a letter from JP Morgan addressed to Jenny referencing the trust – as lawyers for Paulson say it’s proof that she knew of its existence.
The letter, from 2006, 18 months after the birth of their second daughter Giselle informed Jenny that she must sign several papers for their two daughters as they were minors at the time.
Paulson’s team also estimate that his is estranged wife is to win the case she would wipe out $1billion from the trust – cutting it in half – adding it is ‘just to increase her divorce settlement.’
Paulson told DailyMail.com: ‘The trusts were prudently formed decades ago to provide for our children.
‘There was no fraud, no stealing, no siphoning, no hiding. Jenny was fully aware of the Trusts since they were formed.
‘JPMorgan, as the trustee, have notified her of the trusts since 2006. She signed tax returns every year since their formation, evidencing the trusts. Representatives from JPMorgan were available to consult with Jenny at all times.’
They added that his estranged wife was offered ‘hundreds of millions of dollars’ to settle out of court, and revealed that Paulson offered to ‘remove future spouses and children as trust beneficiaries.’
James Smith, counsel for Paulson, told DailyMail.com: ‘She outright rejected the offer. Thus, her argument that she is opening the trusts to protect her children is absolutely false.
‘Her attempt to break the trusts will cost her daughters about $1 billion in future taxes and rob them of their inheritance, just to increase her divorce settlement.
‘For someone who will be one of the richest women in America regardless of how this case ends, her greed is unconscionable.’
But Jenny’s lawyers deny that the settlement was offered to her with the removal of future children and spouses from the trust.
Robert Cohen told DailyMail.com: ‘I ask Mr. Paulson and his attorney, respectfully: Put your offer in writing, in the form of a court-filed public stipulation, so we know Mr. Paulson is serious and will be bound by it, and then we can proceed.
‘Mr Paulson conveniently omits the offer we did make to him – to “decant” or recreate the trusts so that there will be no adverse tax consequences.
‘Why did he omit that proposal we made? Why has he not responded to that proposal? We ask him now, on the record: Yes or no.
Her team denies that she was aware of the trusts, adding that she ‘believes in this case being decided in a public trial, under the rule of law and due process’.
Amid the bitter divorce Paulson’s team claims that he is ‘fighting to protect’ his daughters and ‘safeguard their future’.
It is claimed that there are concerns that the girls will have their portion of the trusts ‘diluted’, if Paulson has any more children with his new fiancée.
Jenny claims that the trusts have improperly ‘served to evade Mr. Paulson’s lawful obligation in the event of divorce.’
Two of the three trusts contain language that benefits ‘Paulson’s legal wife,’ meaning that Jenny will be deprived of the assets upon divorce, court papers show.
Romania-born Jenny, who spent 21 years married to Paulson after meeting him and working as his secretary, has denied all claims that she is acting out of greed.
Legal filings previously branded her as ‘greedy’, with her lawyers hitting back and claiming his alleged siphoning of funds into secret trusts is the ‘ultimate example of spousal abuse’.
Sources close to Jenny told DailyMail.com that she and her daughters are ‘like one person’, and her lawyers previously denied that she is trying to take any money from them.
Paulson’s lawyers say she knew about the trusts because they are named in nearly two decades of joint tax returns which she herself signed.
The billionaire and his new fiancée hosted Donald Trump for his biggest political fundraising event of the 2024 election season to date and she had a massive diamond sparker on her left ring finger.
A group of ultra-wealthy donors were hosted by the power couple in Palm Beach for a gathering that was expected to rake in $43 million for the Republican presidential hopeful.
The fundraiser for the ex-president was dubbed the ‘Inaugural Leadership Dinner’ and took place at Paulson’s $100million Palm Beach mansion which is part of the real estate portfolio he and his ex-wife are battling over.
It comes after a state appeals court rejected Paulson’s motion to have oral arguments to dismiss his wife’s claims closed to the public.
The former couple have a massive collection of luxury real-estate amassed in their two-decade-long marriage and remain embroiled in a bitter battle over the portfolio, which includes the mega mansion in Palm Beach boasting nine bedrooms and 10 and a half bathrooms.
It is positioned on the Intracoastal Waterway with views of the Atlantic Ocean right across the street. It is one of Palm Beach’s most expensive, with luxurious oversized arched windows, columns and wrought-iron detailing.
The 30,000 square feet property also has several loggias and terraces with water views, a pool and spa, an outdoor lounge with a fire pit, and a primary bedroom suite with dual bathrooms, according to Mansion Global.
Not only was Trump in attendance but he was joined by former First Lady Melania Trump who has been absent from the 2024 campaign trail so far, though she’s reportedly set to host her own fundraising event later this month.
Tickets for the glitzy event Saturday went for as much as $814,600 for the chairman level which includes seating at the table with the former president, reception and a photo opportunity.
Jenny and Paulson also paid $14.7 million for a neo-Georgian townhouse in Manhattan.
They also have an estate in Southampton, New York, called Old Tress, which was obtained for an eye-popping $41 million in 2008, and a luxury 95-acre property called the Hala Ranch in Aspen.
The ranch was built in 1991 and was originally purchased by Saudi Arabia’s Prince Bandar bin Sultan for $135 million. The estate has been ranked by Forbes magazine as the most expensive home in the United States.
Paulson became a celebrity in the world of finance when in 2007 he made an unprecedented bet against the then-booming housing market, predicting that the subprime loan bubble would burst.
When Paulson’s forecast came to pass, he and his investors walked away from the financial calamity $20 billion richer. Paulson’s hedge funds managed $38 billion at their height in 2011, which had shrunk to $8 billion by the end of 2019.
A 2009 book about the hedge fund trader called The Greatest Trade Ever quoted him as saying Jenny was ‘a breath of fresh air’.
