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DBS Rejects SG$1.3 Billion Lawsuit Linked to 1MDB Recovery Efforts

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DBS Rejects SG$1.3 Billion Lawsuit Linked to 1MDB Recovery Efforts

DBS Bank (SGX:D05) said it "categorically rejects" a lawsuit seeking about SG$1.298 billion in damages related to 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) recovery efforts.

The claim was filed by Affinity Equity International Partners, Blackrock Commodities (Global), Platinum Global Luxury Services and TKIL Global Investments, all of which are in liquidation, DBS said in a Wednesday announcement.

The lawsuit was also filed by their liquidators, Jason Aleksander Kardachi and Karnjote Singh s/o Jarmal Singh, according to the bank.

DBS said it has consulted its legal advisers and "will vigorously resist" the claim. The bank has assessed that no provisions are required at this stage.

The lawsuit is the latest in a series of wide-ranging efforts to recover funds allegedly misappropriated from 1MDB.

U.S. investigators have said about $4.5 billion was stolen from the Malaysian state fund between 2009 and 2014 in a complex scheme spanning multiple countries.

DBS said global recovery efforts related to 1MDB have been a matter of public record and have been supported by legal counsel since 2018.

During that period, there had been no claim against the Singapore lender, according to its statement.

In July last year, liquidators seeking to recover funds linked to 1MDB sued Standard Chartered Bank in Singapore, alleging the lender enabled fraud that resulted in more than $2.7 billion in financial losses between 2009 and 2013.

The latest claim adds to the legal fallout from the long-running 1MDB scandal, as liquidators and other parties continue efforts to trace and recover assets tied to the fund.

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