Ex-Goldman Sachs bankers banned from industry over 1MDB scandal

Updated 5 years ago · Published on 13 Mar 2019 8:00AM · 1 Comments

Former Goldman Sachs banker Tim Leissner with his wife, Kimora Lee Simmons, in 2014. The former head of Goldman Sachs’ Southeast Asian unit faces a lifetime ban from the industry. – AFP pic, March 13, 2019.

THE US Federal Reserve has banned former Goldman Sachs bankers Tim Leissner and Roger Ng from the finance industry for their role in the 1MDB scandal, reports Bloomberg.

The investment bank arranged three bond sales in 2012 and 2013 helped 1Malaysia Development Bhd raise US$6.5 billion (RM27 billion) and pocked a US$600 million fee.

The Fed said Leissner and Ng coordinated the bond offerings in “a scheme that illegally diverted billions of dollars from a Malaysian sovereign wealth fund”.

Last November, Tim Leissner, who once headed Goldman Sachs’ Southeast Asian unit, pleaded guilty to violating US anti-bribery and money-laundering laws and agreed to pay US$43.7 million in restitution of ill-gotten gains. He faces a lifetime ban from the banking industry.

Ng or Ng Chong Hwa, Leissner’s deputy, is to be extradited to the US to face charges, according to reports last month.

Goldman Sachs has denied any wrongdoing and claims it was misled by Leissner and senior officials in the Malaysian government about the role of a key intermediary in the scandal, Low Taek Jho, better known as Jho Low.

In January, Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon apologised to Malaysians over the bank’s role in the 1MDB scandal.

“Given the Department of Justice’s charges, this development is hardly surprising,” said Goldman Sachs spokesman Michael DuVally was quoted as saying in response to the Fed’s latest ban. – March 13, 2019.

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  • At the point when the crimes were committed both Tim & Ng were explicitly employees of Goldman Sachs and held senior positions in the bank. They were instrumental in not only creating wealth for themselves but also to the bank, which in every count is illegal. Action should be taken against the bank to not only recoup the commissions paid to the bank but because the action of Tim and Ng, including that if the bank had resulted in massive losses to 1MDB, the banks and the two gents should be sued for total losses incurred by 1MDB.

    Posted 5 years ago by Kampung Boy · Reply