Malaysian sovereign wealth fund 1MDB said on Thursday it had been granted permission to take legal action against Swiss private bank BSI over financial losses linked to unauthorised fund transfers.
1MDB, at the centre of a massive financial scandal that brought down Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak in 2018, accuses BSI of facilitating transfers and orchestrating money laundering schemes that led to the misappropriation of its assets.
According to the fund, the Singapore High Court dismissed an application by BSI to oppose a $394 million claim that 1MDB and a subsidiary had filed against the bank, paving the way for the case to proceed.
“We are committed to holding institutions and individuals involved in the misappropriation of Malaysia’s sovereign wealth fund to account, while ensuring the recovery and return of these assets to the Malaysian people,” a 1MDB board spokesperson said.
Lugano’s main bank, BSI, was liquidated in 2016. The lawsuit against it is part of 1MDB’s global efforts to recover billions of dollars embezzled from the fund. The court’s decision is the fund’s second legal victory in two days.
On Wednesday, a Swiss court sentenced two PetroSaudi executives to prison for embezzling $1.8 billion from the sovereign wealth fund. They will also have to repay $1.75 billion to 1MDB, plus interest.
The scandal surrounding the 1MDB fund, which was supposed to contribute to Malaysia’s economic development, has led to the opening of proceedings in several countries, including the United States. According to the American justice system, more than $4.5 billion was embezzled from the fund between 2009 and 2015, in a fraud with global ramifications.
أخبار متعلقة :