Rafed Al-Khorafi, chairman of the Kuwait-based Al-Khorafi business group, is seeking $225 million from Bank Sarasin, the Swiss private bank, alleging in a lawsuit that the Rabobank Groep unit provided “negligent investment advice”, according to news reports.

Sarasin declined to comment on the matter when contacted by WealthBriefing.

Mr Al-Khorafi and his family lost about $75 million after Bank Sarasin-Alpen and its parent recommended they invest in complex financial products instead of capital-protected instruments as they requested, according to a claim filed on 9 December last year in the court of the Dubai International Financial Centre, according to Bloomberg.

The claim seeks triple damages because of the alleged negligence.

Mr Al-Khorafi said he borrowed funds to invest in capital-protected products that would provide income to meet interest payments on the loans and generate a surplus. Instead, the bank recommended interest-bearing products that didn’t guarantee the capital, according to the claim. All of the products were issued and distributed by Rabobank and Sarasin, the man alleged.

The story highlights how banks and other institutions that have been hit by the financial crisis have faced litigation on a number of fronts from investors, as in the case of banks which sold auction rate securities in the US.