18 December 2018
Malaysia’s attorney general Tommy Thomas said that Malaysia has filed criminal charges against Goldman Sachs and two former employees in connection with a corruption at the country’s sovereign investment fund, 1MDB. The US Bank raised $6.5 million in bonds for 1MDB. Part of the proceeds of the bond issue was diverted into private bank accounts. 1MDB was set up by the former prime minister Najib Razak.
Goldman Sachs received $600 million in fees, which the attorney general described as “several times higher than the prevailing market rates and industry norms.”
Tim Leissner and Roger Ng Chong Hwa, former Goldman Sachs bankers, are among those facing new charges in Malaysia. Mr Leissner was Goldman’s South East Asia chairman. He left the bank in 2016. Mr Ng was a managing director at Goldman until he left the bank in May 2014. Malaysia also filed charges against financier Low Taek Jho, also known as Jho Low, who is absconding from the law. Jho Low negotiated the bond issue with the bank and masterminded the diversion of funds.
Last month, US justice department file criminal charges against Mr Leissner, Mr Ng and Mr Low. Mr Leissner pleaded guilty in the US of money laundering and bribery charges.
The bank is being investigated in at least six countries for its role in the 1MDB scandal. BBC reported.
The 1MDB scandal brought down Najib Razak from power in the last general election.
