1MDB issue: Malaysia can only assist foreign probe

The Singapore government has the right to decide on any investigation and enforcement related to any misconduct that happened there involving 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB).

Tourism and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz said the funds and companies implicated in the case are subjected to the laws of the city-state.

He said Malaysia is always ready to cooperate and assist any oversea government in their investigation on 1MDB.

He also said the Malaysian government did not need to issue any statement on the closure of the Singapore branch of the Falcon Private Bank as the matter had nothing to do with Malaysia.

“There’s nothing that we won’t give our cooperation to in the investigation on 1MDB. It has been more than a year (since the issue came about), so just tell us what sort of cooperation they (foreign governments) need from us. We will help.

“The funds are not in this country. If it’s in Singapore, then it is up to Singapore to take action.

“This goes the same for Switzerland, if they want to probe the alleged embezzlement, it happened in their country. So it is their investigation.

“Even for the United States, we can assist in their investigation but they need to tell us what they want. The funds are all overseas, the misconducts happened overseas. As for us, we help where we can,” Mohamed Nazri said.

Yesterday, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) had ordered the Zurich-based Falcon to cease operations. It was the second time that Singapore had ordered a Swiss bank to close its branch there in relations to the 1MDB case, the first being the BSI Bank in May.

MAS had also penalised two other Swiss-based banks in Singapore yesterday – DBS and UBS – for breaches in the republic’s anti-money laundering law.