Standard Chartered faces US$2.7bil lawsuit linked to 1MDB
PETALING JAYA : Standard Chartered Plc is facing a US$2.7 billion lawsuit from liquidators alleging it played a role in enabling the laundering of billions of dollars misappropriated from Malaysia's troubled sovereign wealth fund 1MDB.
Liquidators began legal proceedings against the UK bank in Singapore, according to a statement released today.
The Financial Times (FT) reported the lawsuit earlier.
Standard Chartered told the newspaper it had yet to receive the claim documents.
The claimants allege that Standard Chartered permitted more than 100 intrabank transfers between 2009 and 2013 that helped to conceal the flow of stolen funds.
'Such transfers led to the loss of more than US$2.7 billion for the claimants, as well as S$20 million in public funds,' the statement said.
Standard Chartered said in a statement to the FT that it 'emphatically rejects any claims' made by the 1MDB companies.
'The bank added that the liquidators had publicly stated they were 'shell companies with no legitimate business,' the FT reported.
The 1MDB scandal embroiled Goldman Sachs Group Inc and led to the imprisonment of a former Malaysian prime minister.
Singapore authorities imposed a S$5.2 million fine against Standard Chartered in 2016 for anti-money laundering breaches related to the case. Other banks were also fined.
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