IMDB saga: StanChart disputes $3.4 billion claim by liquidators in Singapore

More than US$2.7 billion (S$3.4 billion) in alleged misappropriated funds is being sought from Standard Chartered Singapore (StanChart) in a High Court lawsuit filed by liquidators in the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) saga.

- Grace Leong

The suit, which represents the latest wide-ranging effort to recover funds siphoned from Malaysia's sovereign wealth fund 1MDB - from which US investigators claim about US$4.5 billion was stolen between 2009 and 2014 - was brought by court-appointed liquidators Angela Barkhouse and Toni Shukla from financial services firm Kroll.

When asked by The Straits Times why the lawsuit was being brought at this juncture, a Singapore-based lawyer for the liquidators declined to comment.

The suit, which was filed on June 30, seeks to hold StanChart accountable for its role in allegedly enabling fraud to be committed against 1MDB and the systematic theft of funds.

Three companies in liquidation linked to 1MDB - Alsen Chance Holdings, Blackstone Asia Real Estate Partners and Brightstone Jewellery - alleged that between 2009 and 2013, StanChart permitted over 100 intra-bank transfers that helped conceal the flow of stolen funds and chose to overlook obvious red flags regarding these transfers.

The suit claims that in doing so, the bank failed to comply with Singapore's anti-money laundering (AML) regulations and client due diligence rules.

StanChart, in a statement on July 1, said: "Any claims by these companies are without merit and Standard Chartered will vigorously defend any lawsuit commenced by the liquidators."

The suit claims that the three companies lost over US$2.7 billion and $20 million in public funds.