Goldman Sachs CEO: I feel horrible bankers who broke the law in 1MDB – Nation



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SINGAPORE (Reuters): Goldman Sachs chief executive officer David Solomon said on Wednesday that he felt "horrible" that two former employees "flagrantly violated the law" in their dealings with 1Malaysia Development Berhad .

US prosecutors have filed criminal charges against the two former Goldman bankers and a Malaysian financier in connection with the fund's alleged theft of billions of dollars.

A 1MDB money-use survey has become the largest conducted by the Justice Department as part of its anti-kleptocracy program, and the scandal has been one of the The main reasons why Malaysian voters rejected Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, for nearly a decade. the general election of 9 May.

"It is obviously very sad to see two former employees of Goldman Sachs flagrantly flouting our policies and flagrantly breaking the law," Solomon said in an interview with Bloomberg TV in Singapore.

"I am horrified by the fact that Goldman Sachs employees, whether partners or beginners, are ignoring our policies and breaking the law," Solomon said.

US prosecutors announced last week that Tim Leissner, a former Goldman Sachs partner in Asia, had pleaded guilty to conspiracy to launder money and conspiracy to violate the law on corrupt practices. Foreign (Foreign Corrupt Practices Act), and had agreed to confiscate $ 43.7 million.

Roger Ng, the other former defendant of banker Goldman, was arrested in Malaysia and should be extradited.

Reuters could not immediately contact Ng's lawyer on Wednesday. His lawyer did not immediately respond to a request for comment after US prosecutors unveiled the charges last Thursday.

Goldman also put his former co-head of Asian investment bank, Andrea Vella, on his role in the company's stake in the case, pending a review of allegations, according to someone close to the decision.

The Wall Street bank said Friday in a securities deposit that it could also face penalties for its transactions with 1MDB.

When asked if he could guarantee that neither he, nor the former CEO, Lloyd Blankfein, nor any of the members of the management team, suspected of Illegality or violation of compliance in their dealings with 1MDB, Solomon said:

"We take the respect and control of our company extremely seriously, we always … We will continue to cooperate with the authorities, a process is in place and this process will continue." According to prosecutors, the investment bank generated fees of approximately US $ 600 million for its business with 1MDB, which included three bond offerings in 2012 and 2013, which yielded US $ 6.5 billion. (23.29 billion RMB). Leissner, Ng and others have received important bonuses related to this income.

Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng told Reuters in June that the government would investigate the possibility of claiming claims from Goldman Sachs.

Tun Tun Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said Malaysia would examine why Goldman had received about $ 600 million in tuition fees, an amount that critics say exceeds normal levels.

Goldman asserted that the exceptional costs associated with the additional risks it took after purchasing the unrated bonds while seeking investors and that, in the case of the 2013 transaction involving an amount of 2.7 billion US dollars (11.24 billion RMB), funds pressed for an investment planned.

The new Malaysian government has banned Najib and his wife from leaving the country, and the former prime minister faces numerous accusations of corruption, money laundering and abuse of power, although he has always denied any wrongdoing related to 1MDB.

In another interview with Bloomberg on Tuesday, Malaysian prime minister Anwar Ibrahim said he would

"inexcusable" if Goldman Sachs was complicit in the scandal. – Reuters

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