KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 9): The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) said today it has filed a report with the Singapore Police Force against the author of an article published on www.statestimesreview.com on Monday (Nov 5) for making statements that were false and malicious in relation to MAS' role in the 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) probe.

In a statement today, MAS said the article titled “Lee Hsien Loong becomes 1MDB’s key investigation target” impugned the integrity of MAS as a financial regulator. MAS said the article alleged Malaysia had signed several unfair agreements with Singapore, in exchange for Singapore banks’ assistance in laundering 1MDB’s funds. 

"The article is baseless and defamatory. The article ignores the unprecedented and robust actions taken by MAS over the last two years against Singapore-based banks and bankers in relation to their roles in 1MDB related transactions, in most instances ahead of enforcement actions by foreign jurisdictions.  

"It also makes false allegations that Singapore was forced to reopen its investigations into 1MDB, only after the change in political leadership in Malaysia. Investigations into the 1MDB case had never been closed. At its Annual Report Press Conferences in 2016 and 2017, MAS had made clear that it would not hesitate to investigate any new leads or evidence relating to 1MDB-related fund flows. This was reiterated in the public statement jointly issued by MAS, the Attorney General’s Chambers, and the Singapore Police Force on 8 June 2018," MAS said.

According to MAS, Singapore’s law enforcement and regulatory agencies has also been cooperating actively with their counterparts in Malaysia, Switzerland, Luxembourg and the US during the tenure of the previous Malaysian government. 

"MAS has placed utmost importance on safeguarding its integrity as a financial regulator, and takes seriously, any false allegations to the contrary," MAS said.