Putrajaya now says it's a mistake, only after 2 months

KUALA LUMPUR - Putrajaya admitted today that the US$1.103 billion (RM3.91 billion) redeemed from 1Malaysia Development Berhad’s (1MDB) Cayman Islands account had been mistakenly described as “cash” instead of just assets by the investment firm.

Explaining the matter, Second Finance Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah confirmed his ministry’s clarification earlier this week that the redemption, now parked in Singapore’s BSI Bank, is in the form of “units” and not US dollars as previously claimed by 1MDB CEO Arul Kanda Kandasamy.

“There’s a mistake… mistake in the sense that, the impression (given by 1MDB) when they said they have redeemed (the funds) and saved (them) in the Singapore bank (Singapore BSI).... so the impression is that there’s cash, (but) actually that is a saving,” Ahmad Husni said told reporters at the Dewan Rakyat today.

“That (the redemption) is (in) unit... that’s what it is… in unit, and then, that is being backed sovereign wealth funds,” Ahmad Husni said, but declined to explain further what he meant by “units”.

He said that Putrajaya is also working to repatriate all its assets currently being kept in the bank in question.