In a recent development reported, a service provider in the Cayman Islands has leaked documents connecting the family of Malay tycoon and former finance minister Tun Daim Zainuddin to an undisclosed offshore trust with assets estimated to be worth hundreds of millions of ringgit. The revelation adds a layer of complexity to the ongoing investigation by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) into the sources of Daim's wealth, initiated following the release of the Pandora Papers by the Investigative Consortium of Investigative Journalism (ICIJ) in 2021.
The leaked documents, provided by the ICIJ, suggest that Daim's wife, Toh Puan Naimah Khalid, and their two sons, Muhammed Amir Zainuddin and Muhammed Amin Zainuddin, are the beneficial owners of the offshore fund named ZA Trust. The trust reportedly holds assets totaling approximately US$52.56 million (RM244.06 million) as of 2020, surpassing the reported value of past offshore trusts linked to Daim, which were valued at under £25 million (RM148.26 million).
According to the leaked documents ZA Trust received a loan of US$49 million (RM227.53 million) from the Adam Zeta Trust. However, the purpose of the loan and information about the owner of the Adam Zeta Trust remain undisclosed.
The leaked documents are reported to have originated from Genesis Trust & Corporate Services Ltd, a Cayman Islands-based company offering various financial services. The value of ZA Trust significantly increased in 2020, gaining US$42.80 million (RM198.74 million) from the revaluation of unquoted investments. These investments included shares in three offshore-registered companies: Branworth Holdings Limited, Copperfield Investment Holdings Limited, and Straits Properties Holdings Limited.
Notably, the ownership structure of these three companies involves incorporation in tax havens and layers of trusts and companies in offshore jurisdictions, making it challenging to identify the actual owners. It was pointed out that two of these companies have connections to Daim beyond ZA Trust, through an individual named Francis Donald Ventura.
Ventura, according to the news portal, owns both companies and is listed as a trustee for the UK-incorporated charity Ilham Foundation, established by Naimah in 2016, with Amir and Amin appointed as trustees in 2017.
The leaked documents also revealed compliance records from Genesis Trust, suggesting that the beneficial owners of ZA Trust are considered "high risk" due to their relation to Daim. While the ICIJ has reportedly reached out to Genesis Trust for a response to the leaked documents.
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