The Malaysian Insight

THE government owes taxpayers an explanation whether three Malaysian banks approved unsecured loans to Genting Hong Kong in a reckless manner, Subang MP Wong Chen said today.

This is in light of news reports that Malayan Banking Bhd, CIMB Berhad and RHB Bank Bhd loaned troubled cruise operator Genting Hong Kong US$600 million (RM2.5 billion).

“The government of Malaysia via various agencies and the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) are substantial shareholders in all three banks.

“The government is supposed to look after taxpayers’ money and a large percentage of working adults are EPF depositors.

“That being the case, the public has a right to know whether these unsecured loans were approved in a reckless manner,” Wong said in a statement posted on Facebook.

The bankers who approved these loans must also come forward to explain their actions, he added.

According to shareholding records as of December 31, 2021, Maybank’s biggest investor is Amanah Saham Bumiputera through Amnanahraya Trustees Berhad with a stake of 34.01%, followed by the EPF at 12.94% and Permodalan Nasional Berhad (PNB) at 7.09%.

Khazanah Nasional is the biggest stakeholder in CIMB with a 25.7% shareholding followed by EPF (15.3%), PNB (11.8%) and Retirement Fund Incorporated (KWAP) at 6.3%.

Meanwhile, EPF holds 42.3% of RHB, followed by PNB (6.1%) and KWAP (5.89%).

Genting Hong Kong, which is part of Genting Malaysia’s empire of companies held by billionaire Lim Kok Thay, is facing court cases in the United States over unpaid fuel bills for its luxury cruise ship, The Crystal Symphony.

The liner is set to be seized to repay US$1.2 million in unpaid fuel bills if it docks in Miami, amid reports that it is being diverted to the Bahamas after a court issued an arrest warrant.

The company reported a record loss of US$1.7 billion in May, as the pandemic ravaged the cruise line industry.

Its German shipbuilding subsidiary, MV Werften, also went into insolvency last week.

Amid news of its sinking cruise line, Lim resigned as chairman and chief executive officer of Genting Hong Kong on January 21 with the company heading into liquidation. – January 24, 2022.