Formerly employed at BSI Bank Singapore, Kevin Swampillai testified today in the civil suit filed by SRC International Sdn Bhd against former Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, shedding light on the bank's failure to fulfill legal obligations regarding fraudulent transactions. Swampillai, who served as the head of Wealth Management Services at BSI Bank Singapore before resigning in 2016, admitted that the bank overlooked reporting sham transactions totaling US$864.5 million to Singaporean authorities due to the allure of lucrative fees.
According to Swampillai's testimony, BSI Bank Singapore neglected to disclose these transactions to the Commercial Affairs Department of the Singapore Police Force and the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) during the period between November 2011 and April 2012. Despite the presence of red flags, the bank failed to file suspicious transaction reports (STR) as required by regulatory obligations.
The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) took action against BSI Bank Limited (BSI Bank) in 2016, serving notice of intention to withdraw its merchant bank status due to serious breaches of anti-money laundering regulations and mismanagement.
Swampillai highlighted that he was unaware of the purpose of fund transfers from SRC International (Malaysia) Limited to BSI Bank's account, as no information was provided by the company or Jho Low, a Malaysian businessman-turned-fugitive. He emphasized that BSI Bank's Know-Your-Client (KYC) and Anti Money Laundering (AML) obligations apply to all information, regardless of confidentiality.
In retrospect, Swampillai acknowledged that fiduciary structures were exploited to obscure the destination of funds while creating the illusion of legitimacy in Malaysia. Despite pressure from BSI Bank, Jho Low refused to disclose details, citing confidentiality requirements.
Meanwhile, Najib Razak, currently serving a reduced six-year jail sentence for misappropriating funds from SRC International, faces legal action from the company seeking damages and accountability for losses incurred during his tenure as Emeritus Advisor.
SRC International, now owned by the Ministry of Finance Incorporated (MoF Inc), seeks compensation of US$1.18 billion and additional damages from Najib. The company alleges that Najib abused his power and misappropriated funds for personal gain. The case continues as SRC International pursues justice and financial restitution.
Young Sok Fun is a content creator under the Newswav Creator programme, where you get to express yourself, be a citizen journalist, and at the same time monetize your content & reach millions of users on Newswav. Log in to creator.newswav.com and become a Newswav Creator now!
The User Content (as defined on Newswav Terms of Use) above including the views expressed and media (pictures, videos, citations etc) were submitted & posted by the author. Newswav is solely an aggregation platform that hosts the User Content. If you have any questions about the content, copyright or other issues of the work, please contact Newswav.
