London, Oct. 25: The sultan of Brunei, who is embroiled in the most expensive family feud in legal history, transferred $8 billion (£3.9 billion) of state funds into his personal bank account to help fund his lavish lifestyle.

The sultan, one of the world’s richest men, has been forced to disclose his personal finances in a court case at the Privy Council in London, which is the former British colony’s ultimate court of appeal.

He and his younger brother Prince Jefri have been involved in an extraordinary dispute over money which has lasted for almost 10 years — and which is likely to end with a legal bill of £200 million. To help it reach a decision, the Privy Council ordered the sultan to open his books to the court.

The £3.9 billion, which exceeds Brunei’s entire annual gross domestic product, was paid into his personal account over four years. Papers supplied to the court, which sits in Downing Street, include a 50-page list of payments to hundreds of people who have benefited from the sultan’s legendary spending.

The payments, totalling £19.5 billion, include £1.25 million to masseuses and acupuncturists; £7.3 million and £6.59 million to two house supervisors; £1.26 million to a badminton coach and £5.86 million to each of his five public relations officers, listed as Yoya, Prall, Vicky, Shelly and Janet.

The papers were supplied to the court by the Brunei Investment Authority, which reports to the sultan.

They also show that British barrister Desmond Browne received a payment of £2,440 and that the sultan’s outgoings included £48,859 for guards for the exotic bird cages at his palace.

The sultan is suing Prince Jefri, accusing him of embezzling £8 billion in the 13 years that he was finance minister of the oil and gas-rich state. The sultan claims that the prince has failed to repay all of the £3 billion that was agreed in an out-of-court settlement in2000.

Prince Jefri transferred many of the assets, including a number of properties in Brunei, the Philippines and Britain, to the Brunei government.

Other returned assets included cars, paintings, aircraft and boats, including a yacht described as Pacific Heights Motor Yacht. It is usually known by its famously chosen name of MV Tits.

But Prince Jefri declined to complete the return of assets, alleging that the sultan reneged on his part of the deal by repossessing properties in Brunei that he had agreed the prince should hold.

The prince is appealing against the embezzlement allegations, claiming he can never receive a fair trial in Brunei, where the sultan is absolute ruler.

After a four-day hearing before Lords Bingham, Hope, Mance, Neuberger and Scott, the Privy Council reserved its judgment on Prince Jefri’s appeal until later this month.

The Privy Council is Brunei’s superior court, a legacy of former British rule. A tiny state in the north of the mostly Indonesian island of Borneo, Brunei was administered by the British for much of the last century, only gaining full independence in 1984.