But the method he devised would ultimately land him in court where he and an associate have now been fined $440,000 for breaching the Overseas Investment Act.

A just-released High Court decision by Justice Layne Harvey details how Klaus decided to purchase a 91ha olive grove at Raupunga in Northern Hawke’s Bay in 2021.

Investigators at the Overseas Investment Office would later allege that Klaus had no intention of keeping the property – or even making a profit – and planned to flip it soon after taking ownership to access his crypto funds.

The problem was that due to its size and nature, the land was deemed sensitive under foreign buyer rules and Klaus needed Overseas Investment Office (OIO) consent.