Abu Dhabi's Ipic investigates missing $1.4bn

10 September 2015

Malaysian fund denies responsibility

  • Abu Dhabi’s International Petroleum Investment Company (Ipic) investigates a $1.4bn discrepancy
  • The 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) claims the payment was made, but it does not appear in Ipic records
  • State fund 1MDB is currently being investigated for corruption and mismanagement

The Abu Dhabi investment fund International Petroleum Investment Company (Ipic) is investigating a $1.4bn discrepancy in its dealings with 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), according to the Financial Times.

1MDB records show the money was paid out, but Ipic has no record of receiving the funds.

The $1.4bn was collateral against Ipic guarantees of a $3.5bn bond issuance by 1MDB in 2012, the Financial Times reports.

Both parties and their auditors deny any wrongdoing.

Ipic agreed to cover a $1bn loan due from 1MDB in June, and help restructure its $11bn in debts. Controversy has long surrounded the Malaysian fund’s investments and losses. Investigations have been undertaken in Malaysia into mismanagement and corruption, going as far as Malaysia’s Prime Minister Najib Razak, who chairs 1MDB’s advisory board.

Ipic’s managing director Khadem al-Qubaisi stepped down in April. The fund’s profits had fallen 30 per cent in 2014 to AED5.6bn ($1.5bn). 

The CEO of Abu Dhabi’s Aabar Investments, an Ipic subsidiary that handles transactions with 1MDB, was also replaced in August. The departure of the executives was not connected to the issue in Ipic statements.

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