Malaysian Corruption Scandal Reaches Hollywood

Tom Burroughes

2 September 2016

The story of scandal-hit Malaysian state fund , which has already seen a number of prominent private banks scolded for failings over anti-money laundering controls, has widened further, embracing the charity of Hollywood actor Leonardo DiCaprio.

According to International Business Times, the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation, which supports environmental causes, received donations from money originally siphoned off from 1MDB. The fund was created in 2009 by Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak, who has been accused of misusing the fund for personal ends. 1MDB and Razak have denied the allegations.

The publication said that a complaint filed by the US Department of Justice described how DiCaprio's businessman friend Jho Low assisted the charity by buying art worth more than $1 million at a Christie's auction as well as purchasing marked-up champagne at the star's birthday party in 2013.

Earlier this year, the Monetary Authority of Singapore revoked the merchant banking licence of BSI in Singapore for serious failings over transactions related to the Malaysian organisation - the first time such action had been taken against a bank in the Asian city-state since 1984. The MAS has also found a number of significant lapses, it says, at UBS, Standard Chartered, DBS and Falcon Private Bank. To see a recent story on the matter, click here.

Besides Singapore and the US, authorities in Luxembourg and Switzerland have become involved in probing transactions related to 1MDB.