London

THE German supermarket chain Aldi revels in austerity, with stores reminiscent of fluorescent-lit bunkers, shelves packed with one-euro (S$1.50) cans of sliced pork and 39-US-cent "River Cola", and cashiers who only started taking credit cards last summer. That hasn't stopped a widening scandal about, of all things, extravagant spending.

The heirs to co-founder Theo Albrecht's fortune - US$15 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index - are battling for control of Aldi Nord, which owns the chain in northern Germany and eight other European countries. Mr Albrecht's elder son, Theo Jr, has publicly attacked his widowed sister-in-law Babette Albrecht for her purchases of art and vintage cars, and withdrawals from one of the company's controlling trusts. He's using the dispute to try to wrest influence from Babette and her five children, a move she's fighting in court. The company is a rich prize: Last year it had 12.3 billion euros of net revenue in Germany alone.