Goldman Sachs to pay $3.9B settlement in Malaysia 1MDB corruption case News
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Goldman Sachs to pay $3.9B settlement in Malaysia 1MDB corruption case

The Malaysian government announced Friday that Goldman Sachs has agreed to a total settlement of USD $3.9 billion in the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) corruption scandal. In return, the government will dissolve all the criminal charges and proceedings against the firm. The agreement includes a $2.5 billion cash payout by the investment bank and a guarantee to return at least $1.4 billion in proceeds from assets seized by authorities all over the world in relation to this scandal.

Goldman had raised $6.5 billion for 1MDB by arranging three bond sales in 2012 and 2013. Malaysian government officials, including former prime minister Najib Razak, had allegedly siphoned money from the state investment fund. Consequently, the Attorney General of Malaysia instituted criminal proceedings against the Goldman Sachs subsidiaries in December 2018.

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) had finalized a settlement agreement with Malaysian authorities in October 2019. The DOJ had recovered $700 million from Low Taek Jho, who was the mastermind behind the scheme. Combining all the agreements, the Malaysian government will now receive over $4.5 billion. Minister of Finance Tengku Dato’ Sri Zafrul Aziz said, “This settlement represents assets that rightfully belong to the Malaysian people. We are confident that we are securing more money from Goldman Sachs compared to previous attempts, which were far below expectations.”