AP/ December 22, 2011, 11:25 AM

$88 million NY condo bought for Russian student

NEW YORK — New York City's real estate world is atwitter with reports that an $88 million apartment was purchased for the daughter of a Russian fertilizer mogul.

The nearly 7,000-square-foot Manhattan penthouse, on Central Park West, has a wraparound terrace overlooking the greenery. What's now the city's priciest residential property belonged to former Citigroup chairman Sanford Weill, who's chairman of Carnegie Hall, and his wife.

A spokeswoman for Carnegie Hall did not immediately return a call Wednesday for comment on the sale, which was reported by multiple media outlets including Forbes magazine.

A 22-year-old Russian student named Ekaterina Rybolovleva will now enjoy the mammoth pad. She's the daughter of Dmitriy Rybolovlev, who made big money after the fall of the Soviet Union in the 1990s, when national resources were auctioned off — at often ridiculously low prices.

A statement from a representative of the buyer said a company associated with Rybolovleva has signed a contract to purchase the apartment. It said Rybolovleva is "currently studying at a U.S. university" and plans to stay in the apartment "when visiting New York."

A spokeswoman for the property's exclusive agent, Brown Harris Stevens, said Wednesday that she could only confirm that the apartment had been on the market for $88 million.

The four-bedroom penthouse, covering the length of a city block, is in one of the city's ritziest buildings, constructed in 2007 at 15 Central Park West. It has two wood-burning fireplaces and a library.

The two-towered Art Deco-style edifice even offers residents an art concierge and private wine cellars.

The previous highest price for a New York home was paid by equity manager J. Christopher Flowers: $53 million for a Manhattan townhouse in 2006.

The record-setting penthouse is not the wealthy Russian family's only U.S. treasure. Rybolovlev also bought Donald Trump's mansion in Palm Beach, Fla., in 2008, for $95 million.

Rybolovlev, with a net worth estimated at $9.5 billion, is among the world's 100 richest people. He sold the majority of his stake in the fertilizer business, Uralkali, for $6.5 billion last year.

A Rybolovlev spokesman, Alan Basiev, did not respond to an email requesting comment.

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