The sheer amount of fees should have been the first red flag: US$600mil for underwriting US$6.5bil in bond sales between 2012 and 2013 for 1MDB. Goldman is now on the hook in Malaysia, which is alleging the New York-based bank knew that funds from its bond sales were being misappropriated. Goldman bankers on the deal, and Malaysian financier and central figure of the scandal Jho Low, already have been charged with money laundering and bribery in the US. The first two bond sales raised US$3.5bil, meant to go toward acquiring power plants sold by Malaysian billionaire Ananda Krishnan and conglomerate Genting Bhd . Goldman says its fees were well-deserved because it got the deals done fast: 1MDB wanted the money urgently.

Source: The Star December 21, 2018 11:15 UTC