The private plane that crashed into the Baltic Sea off the coast of Latvia after being escorted by NATO fighter jets belonged to German businessman Georg Griesemann.
His company Quick Air announced this on Monday.
"I can confirm that it was the private jet of our owner Georg Griesemann," said a spokesman for Cologne-based charter company Quick Air.
He refused to confirm a report by the Cologne newspaper "Express" that Griesemann was the pilot and that he was accompanied by his wife, daughter and daughter's boyfriend.
The cause of the accident is currently unknown.
The Austrian-registered Cessna 551 took off from Jerez in southern Spain on Sunday afternoon. It was headed for Cologne, but turned around in Paris and Cologne before flying straight into the Baltic Sea, where it spiraled into the water east of Gotland.
German and Danish warplanes were dispatched to monitor the plane, and NATO pilots said they saw no one in the cockpit of the Cessna 551. According to aviation experts, the sudden drop in pressure in the cabin could have caused the passengers of the car to faint and therefore they were not visible at that moment.
On Sunday night, planes from several countries and a passenger ferry flew to the crash site to help with the rescue operation.
Debris, debris and an oil-like stain were seen near the crash site. No passengers were found.
Griesemann was a prominent figure in Cologne, the largest city in western Germany.