Net Worth of Internet Entrepreneur Kim Dotcom

How Much Net Worth Does Kim Dotcom Have?

In the late summer of 2016, Kim Dotcom made headlines with his fortune not only in Germany but also internationally. Questions arose as to whether Kim Dotcom could possibly go to jail. Again and again it was said in the international press that the Internet entrepreneur would not get his fortune back. After all, the fortune of Kim Dotcom, whose real name is actually Kim Schmitz, is said to have been around 150 million euros. Now it is assumed that only 1 million euros are left over.

The fact that Kim can no longer access his insane fortune is thanks to the US authorities. They confiscated most of his property in connection with possible copyright infringement. In total, he can access the equivalent of 42,000 euros of his frozen assets per month and use it to pay his lawyers. The attorney’s bill is said to be $ 20 million. Now Kim.com would like to sue the New Zealand government for € 8.6 billion in damages, because it had enabled its Megaupload empire to be destroyed.

But how did this come about? What has Kim Dotcom got into debt that puts him in such a precarious position? New Zealand, his current home, should even be Extradition of his person to the USA have agreed. From copyright infringement to insider trading, Kim Dotcom’s career shows that the actually so successful and hyped internet entrepreneur is anything but a blank slate. It is almost a miracle that a simple secondary school student from Plön would make such big headlines one day. Kim Dotcom’s life story definitely reads almost too fantastic to be true.

The career of Kim Dotcom

Kim Schmitz did not have an easy start in life. This is not only due to his attendance at a secondary school in Plön. Rather, Kim himself says that his childhood was not the best because his father was an alcoholic. That in turn had a decisive effect on the life of little Kim, of course. Still, Kim had an absolute will to make something of herself. That it is not always completely legal to go, however, did not bother the internet entrepreneur. He first appeared as a hacker in the 1990s. As a hacker, he was able to obtain a lot of personal data, which he then used to produce magnetic cards on which he played fake payment data.

When the house was searched, hundreds of them were able to do so fake phone and credit cards be ensured. Since Kim Dotcom faced the prosecution by the criminal investigators at a very young age, he switched sides without further ado. In order not to get too big a fine himself, he supported the investigators instead with his inside knowledge. In his new role as a test customer, Kim Dotcom even helped uncover copyright infringements. In 1994 there was a conviction for the following offenses:

• Fraud
• Computer fraud
• commercial gang help
• Abuse of titles

A two-year suspended prison sentence appeared to the judges to be punishment enough. However, if Kim had not cooperated with the responsible investigators, his sentence would likely have been much higher. The petty criminal hacker was able to avert worse things first. In retrospect, however, it seems like it the course for his future life had already been set.

What happened next for the internet entrepreneur?

The petty criminal Kim was supposed to become a consultant for DeTeMobil. Because thanks to a tip from a friend, the future internet entrepreneur was able to get one Vulnerability in the GSM system of Telekom Deutschland GmbH to exploit in his favor. The proceeds that Kim Schmitz received thanks to this consulting contract, he then used to set up a company in Munich. Data Protect Consulting GmbH was so successful, even TÜV Rheinland showed interest and bought 80 percent of the company. From then on, Kim Dotcom was only a 20 percent shareholder in his company, which filed for bankruptcy in 2001.

While it was still quite quiet about Kim Dotcom at that time, he was more and more in the public eye in the years to come. This was mainly due to his statements, some of which were quite ostentatious. For example, Kim Dotcom claimed that he letsbuyit.com, a troubled US company, with a Financial injection of 50 million euros help out. This investment never came about, but the alleged bridging loan still had an impact on the company’s share price. For this reason, investigations into suspicion of insider trading against Kim Dotcom, who cheerfully continued to draw attention to himself, were initiated.

Kim Schmitz himself even claimed at the same time that he was working with the US FBI and offered a reward for catching Osama bin Laden. After the situation seemed too precarious to him, Kim fled to Thailand. There, however, the entrepreneur was arrested at the beginning of 2002, whereupon he was extradited to Germany and subsequently sentenced. The second imprisonment for the already mentioned insider trading was suspended. Plus, Kim Dotcom had to have one Fine of around 100,000 euros numbers.

FBI pursuit

While Kim Dotcom initially had a difficult time getting a residence permit in New Zealand due to his criminal record, it was finally granted. The New Zealand authorities prohibited the entrepreneur, who from 2010 only called himself Kim Dotcom, from buying real estate. However, that was one of the smallest problems of the former Kieler. After all, it was him FBI hot on the heels and the next scandal about his person was already inevitable. Significant copyright infringements had led to a raid, but it was illegal.

after the US authorities seized Kim Dotcom’s worldwide assets and had carried out an illegal raid on the Internet entrepreneur, the courts in New Zealand intervened. Through several procedures, Kim Dotcom was finally able to obtain that he could access at least part of his assets again. So it was at least possible for him to make a living of more than 100,000 euros per month in New Zealand. What sounds like a real win for Kim Dotcom should not end well. Because in the meantime New Zealand has consented to the extradition of his person to the United States of America. There Kim Schmitz faces a prison sentence of up to 20 years. So far, Kim Dotcom has been able to defend himself against his extradition. But the entrepreneur will probably not succeed in this in the long run. So the once rich Kim Dotcom could soon be behind bars in the US.

The Kim Dotcom case – a prognosis

It is currently unclear what will become of Kim Dotcom in the course of his proceedings in the USA. However, in December 2016 there were voices saying that Kim Dotcom doesn’t have much to worry about. At least one judge from the United States is of this opinion. He is relatively certain that Kim Dotcom could soon be a free man again. The entrepreneur is currently under house arrest in New Zealand – probably also so that he cannot escape again. After all, he had already ventured to the capital of Thailand in the past.

It is still questionable whether there will actually be an extradition. Until then, Kim Dotcom and his six employees, who are also involved in the scandal, have to deny House arrest let yourself endure. There are a number of factors that suggest that Kim Dotcom could win. After all, an agreement between the USA and New Zealand provides that defendants can only be extradited to the other country if it comes to a prison sentence of 5 years or more.

In the case of Kim Dotcom, however, it’s a little special. Copyright infringement in New Zealand can only result in a maximum prison sentence of 4 years. So Kim Dotcom seems to have known exactly which one Benefits of moving to New Zealand brings. In addition, the question arises whether the US authorities are even responsible. Dotcom’s company is headquartered in Hong Kong and not in the United States. In fact, a second court in New Zealand ruled that Kim could be extradited – not for copyright infringement, but for fraud. Together with his lawyers, he is fighting against it and we will see who will ultimately prevail. So it remains exciting.

_{Photo: @KimDotcom}