Several Spanish media outlets are reporting in agreement that Juan Carlos I on 10 October 2026 has abandoned plans to reclaim in court the sum transferred to Corinna Larsen in 2012 65 million euros . No official confirmation from Casa de S. M. el Rey had been issued by the evening.
The sum in question stems from payments said to have been received by the monarch at the time in 2008 from Saudi Arabia . According to investigations documenting financial flows through the holding companies Lucum and Zagatka , Juan Carlos I transferred around €65 million to Corinna Larsen as a gift in 2012. Reports described the gift as “irrevocable”. The events have repeatedly been the focus of legal and political debate in Spain.
According to sources close to the emeritus king, his legal advisers considered in 2025 and 2026, particularly in the United Kingdom, whether the gift could be challenged. Those considerations have now been abandoned. Reasons cited in the reports include legal uncertainty and the risk of further damage to his image. The royal household itself did not comment on the reports.
Legally, reclaiming the money would have entailed a complex civil dispute involving international trusts and offshore structures. Experts cited differing prospects of success, including because of the legal form of the gift, possible limitation issues and the jurisdiction of foreign courts. Politically, such proceedings would have reignited debate in Spain about transparency and accountability in the monarchy.
The decision now reported does not necessarily bring the dispute to a definitive end, but it reduces its immediate significance. It remains unclear whether tax or criminal-law issues are also being examined by the authorities. There have been no new official statements on this.
In previous years, Casa de S. M. el Rey has communicated on certain aspects of the Juan Carlos I case and on his status as emeritus king, but it has so far made no statement on the decision reported here. Until it is officially confirmed, the decision not to seek repayment remains a development reported by media outlets and informed sources on 10 October 2026.
Editor: Mira Cadena (Article created with AI assistance).