A former member of the British royal family, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, may be called to testify in a £40 million civil fraud trial underway in London’s High Court. The case centers on allegations against Selman Turk, a former Goldman Sachs banker, accused of misappropriating assets belonging to a Turkish multinational.

The lawsuit was brought by Nebahat Evyap İşbilen, a wealthy Turkish expatriate who sought refuge in the United Kingdom after her husband, a politician, was imprisoned in Turkey. İşbilen claims she entrusted Turk with transferring approximately $90 million in assets out of Turkey to protect them from government seizure. She alleges Turk diverted around £40 million into offshore accounts and companies under his control.

Turk denies any misconduct, maintaining that all asset transfers were authorized and aimed at safeguarding İşbilen’s wealth. He has also stated he has accounted for all the funds under dispute.

Mountbatten-Windsor’s involvement in the case arose after İşbilen’s legal team uncovered financial transfers from her accounts to the former royal’s household. Notably, a payment of £750,000 was made from İşbilen’s account at Hampden & Co, a private bank, to Mountbatten-Windsor in November 2019. İşbilen’s lawyers contend that Turk described the transaction as a "gift" intended to secure the former prince’s assistance with issues regarding her Turkish passport.

Turk’s defense disputes this characterization, asserting that he did not inform İşbilen of any such connection and that the transfer was made at İşbilen’s direction. According to Turk, the payment was a wedding gift for Princess Beatrice, Mountbatten-Windsor’s elder daughter, from his marriage to Sarah Ferguson, the former Duchess of York.

The payment and other sums were routed through a company called Alphabet Capital, according to İşbilen’s lawyers. Records indicate Mountbatten-Windsor later repaid the £750,000 and reached a settlement with İşbilen, with no outstanding claims pending against him or Ferguson.

Turk’s legal team has sought to include Mountbatten-Windsor as a witness in the trial, asserting his testimony is central to their defense and crucial for challenging allegations about the financial transactions linked to his household. They have applied for permission to submit a late witness summary to compel his testimony, though the former royal is not a party to the litigation.

By contrast, İşbilen’s lawyers argue that efforts to summon Mountbatten-Windsor are procedurally untimely and that his testimony would be largely irrelevant and potentially disruptive to the proceedings. After approximately 90 minutes of argument, Mr Justice Adam Johnson reserved his decision on whether the former prince will be required to appear. The court’s ruling is expected in due course.

The dispute comes amid separate legal proceedings involving Mountbatten-Windsor, who recently won a challenge regarding the validity of warrants executed against his properties following his arrest earlier this year. His legal representatives have not yet commented on the request to compel his testimony in the civil fraud trial.