This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily on November 2, 2017

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysians have the right to know about the latest status of the US$940 million (RM3.98 billion) worth of investment “units” held under 1Malaysia Development Bhd’s (1MDB) subsidiary, Brazen Sky Ltd in Singapore, said DAP lawmaker Tony Pua yesterday.

On Oct 24 last year, the finance ministry, the sole owner of 1MDB, announced a new bank had taken over the role of 1MDB-linked Switzerland-based BSI Bank Ltd as custodian bank for Brazen Sky in the city state. However, it kept mum on the new bank’s name, only saying the investment units were managed by a “fund manager”.

The announcement came after the Monetary Authority of Singapore suspended BSI’s operations in Singapore in May last year and pulled its licence for breaches of money laundering rules, after Switzerland began criminal proceedings against the bank in relation to 1MDB.

Pua, having repeatedly sought updates on these investment units, told reporters at Parliament yesterday that he had asked the finance ministry again about the current value of the remaining investment units owned by Brazen Sky, and to name the bank or financial institution appointed as “custodian” of those units.

His question, he said, was rejected by the Dewan Rakyat Speaker during the last sitting in July, but was accepted for this latest sitting.

However, the written reply he had received, dated Oct 30 from the ministry, “was lengthy and elaborate but totally unrelated” to his question. He said the ministry only said the sale of 1MDB’s power assets, its real estate properties and the investment units will pay off 1MDB’s debts.

“The [finance] minister’s answer could have been less than 10 words, and it would have answered my question perfectly — [concerning] the value of [the] units and the bank’s name. Malaysians have the right to know the [latest] status of the US$940 million worth of investment units held by Brazen Sky,” he said.

In 2015, 1MDB said some RM6.1 billion of the RM42 billion it had borrowed was channelled into Brazen Sky for “investment” purposes, and that the investments, in the form of “units”, were valued at US$2.33 billion as of end-March 2014. Later that same year, it said about US$1.22 billion of the units was redeemed on Nov 5, with proceeds used for debt interest payment, working capital and payments as refundable deposits for an options termination. This was followed by another redemption of US$170 million, leaving US$940 million in fund units.

In April this year, Pua said 1MDB had highlighted the units would be “monetised” to repay RM1.2 billion to Abu Dhabi’s International Petroleum Investment Co.

“Hence, it is an extremely valid question to ask what is the current value of these units, previously held in BSI Bank in Singapore. However, more than a year after BSI lost its licence in Singapore, we are still looking for the same answers regarding Brazen Sky’s accounts. Who is its new custodian bank and what is the status of its units?”