Phillips auction Speedmaster - a 3.000.000-fake?

He should countersue…

The story even get's better:
https://www.nzz.ch/wirtschaft/ld.1740852

Überraschende Wendung im Krimi um eine millionenteure, aber zusammengebastelte Vintage-Uhr von Omega

Jetzt ist klar, wer an einer Auktion in Genf eine gefälschte Vintage-Uhr von Omega gekauft hat: Omega selbst. Das Unternehmen erklärt, dass es von eigenen Mitarbeitern mehrfach getäuscht wurde. Die Beteiligten sind entlassen, die Firma prüft strafrechtliche Schritte.

In der rätselhaften Affäre um eine zusammengebastelte alte OmegaSpeedmaster, die im November 2021 an einer Uhrenauktion in Genf einen Rekordpreis von über 3 Millionen Franken löste, führen die Spuren zum Bieler Uhrenhersteller selbst. Wie Omega, eine Tochter der Swatch Group der Familie Hayek, am Freitagabend mitteilte, war die Marke selber die Käuferin der 3-Millionen-Uhr.

Museumsleiter plädierte für den Kauf
Die Uhr sei vom Leiter des hauseigenen Museums ersteigert worden, mit dem Segen der Firmenleitung. Wie Omega weiter erklärt, hat der Museumsleiter argumentiert, es handle sich bei der Speedmaster aus dem Jahr 1957 um einen seltenen und aussergewöhnlichen Zeitmesser, der unbedingt in die Sammlung von Omega aufgenommen werden und daher um jeden Preis bei dieser Auktion gekauft werden müsse.

Dass die Uhr beim Auktionshaus Phillips für 3 Millionen Franken unter den Hammer kam, verblüffte Uhrensammler und -kenner weltweit. Das war rund acht Mal so viel, wie je für eine Speedmaster bezahlt wurde, und etwa das Dreissigfache des Schätzwerts. Üblicherweise gehen nur Vintage-Armbanduhren der Marken Rolex oder Patek Philippe zu solchen Millionen-Preisen über den Tisch.

Wie die NZZ diese Woche unter dem Titel «Aus einer alten Omega wird eine Drei-Millionen-Speedmaster» berichtet hat, war die Uhr allerdings nicht die Rarität, als die sie im Auktionskatalog angepriesen wurde. Es handelt sich vielmehr um eine Uhr, die Fälscher aus mehreren Uhren und teilweise nachgebauten Einzelteilen zusammengebastelt haben.

Wie es im Artikel heisst, waren auch drei Mitarbeiter von Omega an der Herstellung der Uhr beteiligt. Sie gaben unter anderem interne Informationen heraus, ohne die es nicht möglich gewesen wäre, wichtige Teile der Uhr täuschend echt zu reproduzieren. Omega hat diese Mitarbeiter und auch den Leiter des hauseigenen Museums inzwischen entlassen.

Bis zur Klarstellung von Omega am Freitagabend war allerdings unklar, wer bereit war, die Uhr an der Auktion zu diesem exorbitanten Preis zu kaufen. In der Branche wurde zwar kolportiert, dass zwei steinreiche Sammler sich gegenseitig hochgetrieben hätten, aber glaubwürdig war diese Geschichte nicht. Es gab vielmehr Hinweise, die auf eine konzertierte Aktion der unbekannten Verkäufer deuteten.

Dass Omega selbst an der Auktion zugeschlagen und dabei en passant einen Rekordpreis produziert hat, ist nichts Aussergewöhnliches, im Gegenteil: Es ist ein offenes Geheimnis in der Branche, dass das viele Uhrenhersteller im Stillen tun. Einerseits um seltene Stücke wieder in die eigenen Hände zu bekommen. Anderseits auch, um die Preise für Vintage-Uhren zu pflegen und damit Begehrlichkeiten bei reichen Käufern zu wecken.

Die Verkäufer sind auch die Käufer
Der Fall der zusammengebastelten Rekord-Speedmaster ist jedoch verzwickter: Die gleichen drei Mitarbeiter – unter ihnen der Leiter des Omega-Museums – waren auf der Verkäufer- wie auch auf der Käuferseite aktiv. Will heissen: Sie haben zusammen mit Drittpersonen aus Original- und nachgebauten Teilen eine Uhr kreiert, ihr einen sauberen Stammbaum ausgestellt und sie dann – mit Geld von Omega – zu einem exorbitanten Preis gewissermassen sich selber abgekauft.

Der Uhrenhersteller Omega und das Auktionshaus Phillips betonen beide, Opfer einer organisierten kriminellen Aktivität zu sein. Omega wird gemäss eigenen Angaben strafrechtliche Schritte gegen alle Beteiligten einleiten.

quickly translated by DeepL:

Surprising twist in the crime thriller about a vintage watch from Omega that cost millions, but was cobbled together

It is now clear who bought a fake vintage Omega watch at an auction in Geneva: Omega itself. The company explains that it was deceived by its own employees several times. Those involved have been dismissed, and the company is considering criminal action.

In the mysterious affair surrounding a cobbled-together vintage OmegaSpeedmaster that fetched a record price of more than 3 million Swiss francs at a watch auction in Geneva in November 2021, the clues lead to the Biel-based watchmaker itself. As Omega, a subsidiary of the Hayek family's Swatch Group, announced Friday evening, the brand itself was the buyer of the 3 million watch.

Museum director pleaded for the purchase
The watch was bought at auction by the head of the in-house museum, with the blessing of the company's management, it said. As Omega further explains, the museum director argued that the 1957 Speedmaster was a rare and exceptional timepiece that absolutely had to be included in Omega's collection and therefore had to be purchased at any price at this auction.

The fact that the watch went under the hammer at the Phillips auction house for 3 million francs stunned watch collectors and connoisseurs worldwide. That was around eight times as much as had ever been paid for a Speedmaster, and about thirty times its estimated value. Typically, only vintage wristwatches from Rolex or Patek Philippe brands cross the table at such million-dollar prices.

However, as the NZZ reported this week under the title "An old Omega becomes a three-million Speedmaster," the watch was not the rarity it was touted as in the auction catalog. Rather, it was a watch that counterfeiters assembled from several watches and partially replicated individual parts.

As the article states, three Omega employees were also involved in the making of the watch. Among other things, they gave out internal information, without which it would not have been possible to reproduce important parts of the watch in a deceptively genuine way. Omega has since fired these employees, as well as the head of its in-house museum.

However, until Omega clarified the matter on Friday evening, it was unclear who was willing to buy the watch at the auction for this exorbitant price. There were rumors in the industry that two filthy rich collectors had bid each other up, but this story was not credible. Rather, there was evidence pointing to a concerted effort by the unknown sellers.

The fact that Omega itself struck at the auction and in the process produced a record price en passant is nothing unusual, on the contrary: it is an open secret in the industry that many watch manufacturers do this quietly. On the one hand, to get rare pieces back into their own hands. On the other hand, also to maintain the prices for vintage watches and thus arouse desires among rich buyers.

The sellers are also the buyers
However, the case of the assembled record-breaking Speedmaster is more complicated: The same three employees - among them the head of the Omega museum - were active on the seller's side as well as on the buyer's side. In other words, together with third parties, they created a watch from original and replica parts, issued it with a clean pedigree, and then - with money from Omega - bought it off themselves, so to speak, at an exorbitant price.

Watchmaker Omega and auction house Phillips both insist they are victims of organized criminal activity. Omega says it will take criminal action against all those involved.

The fact that Omega itself struck at the auction and in the process produced a record price en passant is nothing unusual, on the contrary: it is an open secret in the industry that many watch manufacturers do this quietly. On the one hand, to get rare pieces back into their own hands. On the other hand, also to maintain the prices for vintage watches and thus arouse desires among rich buyers.

Smells like damage control and scapegoating to me. Wasn't the buyer from China? Now suddenly Omega? I spoke to Petros after the auction and he told me he had permission to bid until 600k.


Cheers
Jose

But wasn’t Petros the director of the museum?
And potentially involved in this story?

If we are going yo try to puzzle things together this is what mighy have happened:

Rumours were that the watch was put together and sold by a group of dealers. Omega bid to 600k and two other parties kept going to 3m. Winner was a wealthy Chinese buyer which later did not pay Phillips. Shortly after one senior representative of Omega was fired.

If we try to add the information in the article it goes something like this. One or more Omega employees were part of the group selling the 2915 and helped build the watch and give it provenance. This group bid the watch up to 3m as they already knew Omega would buy it. Perhaps they even bid themselves on Omegas behalf. Omega won the lot and either the rumours made them look closer or they were already suspicious towards the employees and purchase. Perhaps it wasn’t the first time they smelled a rat… And now Omega is taking employees and possibly external people (dealers? Phillips?) to court.

So, not one of the Experts in the Factory and at Phillips was questioning the obvious most visible part, the Case Back ?

I have extreme difficulties to believe Petros was actively involved in this. Maybe negligent...but actively?

Omega is being super unfair by highlighting only to the Museum Director as if he was the main culprit. He wasn't! The man just did his job. How about Omega mentioning the other two, one of whom had a far superior position to that of the Museum Director, who they chose to throw under the bus?

There is so much more to this story so better strap in.

Cheers
Jose

You are right. The other one was involved in " unsound " activity before.

All this definitely looks like scapegoating to me. Of course Omega wanted a multi-million auction on one of their watches to do like Rolex and Patek. I'm sure there are much more individuals at Omega who are responsible of this.

I would think the dealers that sold the watch and was involved with Omega employees were the ones chasing money. If Omega just wanted a record they wouldn’t be sueing people. They would just put the brown speedy in their museum and be happy.

Big money unfortunately attracts opportunistic behaviour from people with lacking moral and ethics.

They are suing people because watch enthusiasts identified this watch as a franken.

Not likely. They took actions the week after the auction and the news about the fake bridge came from them now. Not with Jose’s article.