1MDB case: Latest US filing does not warrant further action, MAS says

(CNA) — SINGAPORE: The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) said on Thursday (Jun 29) it has not found anything new in the latest filing by the US Department of Justice that warrants further action.

The Department of Justice filed civil forfeiture lawsuits this year and last year, seeking assets that it alleges were bought with money misappropriated from Malaysia’s scandal-hit state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB).

Speaking at the release of its annual report for 2016/2017 on Thursday, MAS managing director Ravi Menon said the central bank has taken

“tough and unprecedented enforcement actions” to restore Singapore’s reputation of being a “clean and trusted financial centre”.

So far, two merchant banks have been closed while eight others have been fined a total of S$30 million for breaches related to 1MDB – the heaviest aggregate financial penalties to date.

MAS also issued prohibition orders against four individuals, and served notices of prohibition orders against three more for various regulatory breaches. The central bank also imposed lifetime bans for the first time on two individuals.

Mr Menon said that if any new relevant information or leads arise from ongoing investigations in Singapore or elsewhere, “rest assured MAS will reopen the files and pursue the matter”.

He said MAS has also intensified its supervision of financial institutions that have “higher inherent money laundering risks or control areas found to be lacking from past inspections”.

“The inspections go beyond rules-based compliance to focus on risk understanding and management,” he said. Still, he added that industry players, too, must be vigilant to manage the risk of illicit finance and keep Singapore’s financial centre clean.

In May this year, MAS imposed on Credit Suisse and UOB financial penalties amounting to S$700,000 and S$900,000, respectively, for breaching money-laundering regulations, as it completed its two-year review of banks involved in 1MDB-related transactions.

In the latest development surrounding the scandal, AFP reported on Wednesday that Australian model Miranda Kerr has turned over US$8.1 million (S$11.2 million) worth of jewellery to the US Justice Department following allegations that the items were linked to 1MDB.

Kerr received the items from Malaysian financier Jho Low, who helped to develop the fund into its present form. She handed the jewellery last Friday to federal agents in Los Angeles, a spokesman for the model told AFP. Kerr is among a number of celebrities who have been implicated in the scandal.