Even US$3 billion insufficient to stay 1MDB case with Goldman: Malaysia
07 June, 2020
Malaysia's new government wouldn't normally be willing to accept even compensation of US$3 billion from Goldman Sachs in a settlement over the 1MDB scandal, the finance minister told Reuters, ruling out a figure that's far higher than the lender offered last year.
The Southeast Asian nation has charged Goldman Sachs and 17 current and former directors of its units for allegedly misleading investors over bond sales totaling US$6.5 billion that the U.S. bank helped raise for sovereign wealth fund 1MDB (1Malaysia Development Bhd).
Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Aziz, who joined the three-month-old government from the corporate world, said he previously held a conversation with Goldman Sachs representatives last month.
"We are continuing our pursuit to get some good money from GS. And the legal case continues to be ongoing, so we will need to wait for the results of this," the minister said within an interview in his office in Kuala Lumpur on Saturday.
"Whether it's US$2 billion, I can say, no. US$3 billion, no," he added. "As long the amount isn't something we think we are able to accept, then we continue with the legal case."
He declined to state what a satisfactory sum would be.
A Goldman Sachs spokesman didn't immediately respond to an email seeking comment.
Former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said in December that Goldman Sachs had offered "one point something billion" dollars for an out-of-court settlement over it role in the scandal at 1MDB.
In line with the U.S. Justice Department, Goldman Sachs earned US$600 million in fees because of its work with 1MDB.
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