Scandal-hit 1MDB sues banks

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian state fund 1MDB is suing units of Deutsche Bank, JPMorgan and Coutts, according to court documents, the latest effort to recover massive losses from the scandal-hit investment vehicle.

Billions of dollars were looted from 1Malaysia Development Berhad in a globe-spanning fraud that involved former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, and spent on everything from real estate to artwork.

The scandal played a large part in Najib’s long-ruling coalition losing power in 2018, and authorities have since been trying to claw back money looted from state coffers.

1MDB is suing Deutsche Bank (Malaysia) for US$1.11 billion, JPMorgan (Switzerland) for US$800 million and a Swissbased unit of Coutts for $1.03 billion, according to documents filed at Kuala Lumpur High Court on Friday. The fund is also seeking interest payments from all the banks.

The claims are based on “negligence, breach of contract, conspiracy to defraud/injure, and/or dishonest assistance,” according to the documents, which were seen by AFP.

Deutsche Bank said in a statement: “We have not been served any papers, and we are not aware of any basis for a legitimate claim against Deutsche Bank.”

JPMorgan and Coutts did not respond to requests to comment.

The Finance Ministry had announced Monday that 1MDB and a former unit of the fund had filed 22 civil suits in a bid to recover assets worth more than RM96.6 billion (US$23 billion). – Bernama