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KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 21): IJM Corp Bhd (KL:IJM) on Tuesday refuted money laundering allegations and denied that it is being probed by UK authorities, as the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) launched investigations into allegations of a RM2.5 billion money laundering scheme involving the group.
In a media statement, the construction and infrastructure group said it is not aware of any probe by the UK’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO), and clarified that neither the company nor its UK associates have been approached by the British authority.
"The company and its UK associates are not aware of any investigation by the UK’s SFO. We have not been approached and any reports suggesting otherwise are inaccurate," IJM said.
IJM also rejected allegations that it was involved in money laundering, describing the claims as unfounded.
It said that since 2012, its UK investments have been funded primarily through facilities raised from Malaysian financial institutions before being remitted to project special-purpose vehicles in the UK.
"These investments have undergone the company’s established business evaluation and internal governance processes," it added.
According to a Bernama report on Monday, the MACC has identified a member of IJM’s top management holding a Tan Sri title, along with a "company adviser", as persons of interest in relation to allegations of a RM2.5 billion money laundering scheme.
Other media reports had also claimed that the UK’s SFO had launched an investigation into alleged money laundering and corruption involving multi-billion-ringgit transactions linked to the two individuals.
In its statement on Tuesday, IJM clarified that the individual described in reports as a “company adviser” was previously engaged only on a professional basis to provide advisory services for a limited number of corporate transactions.
The group said its chairman, Tan Sri Krishnan Tan, met officers from the MACC earlier in the day and continues to cooperate fully, while other personnel who have been requested to provide information are also assisting the authorities.
IJM stressed that its operations remain unaffected by the ongoing inquiries.
“Business operations continue as usual,” the group said, adding that it remains committed to strong standards of corporate governance, transparency and integrity.
After falling as much as 16.4% on Monday, shares of IJM continued its decline on Tuesday. The counter fell to its intra-day’s low of RM2.49 before paring some of its losses to close eight sen or 3.02% lower at RM2.57.
This values the group at RM9.37 billion. Some 67.5 million shares were traded, making it the third-most active stock on Bursa Malaysia.
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