Century Banking corporation’s CEO and MD Dr. Osama Qais Al-Dereai, rebutted claims that he holds a Malaysian Permanent Resident card.
In an email to TISG, a law firm representing the CEO said the statements about Dr. Al-Dereai’s nationality status are false and baseless.
It said its client does not have citizenship or hold permanent residence in Malaysia.
It also said Dr. Dereai is not a Saudi Arabian citizen.
In an article on links between the said bank and the 1MDB, TISG wrote that Dr. Al-Dereai has deep Malaysian links with “rumours claiming that he allegedly has double citizenship or hold the permanent residence of a second country: That of Malaysia indeed.”
TISG did not intend to harm the CEO’s reputation, as claimed by the law firm. We only reported that it was “rumoured that he has Malaysian PR status.”
The letter also said the latter is not the MD or CEO of Century Banking Corp Ltd. However, the details Dr. Al-Dereai was visible on the Century Banking Corp website, and he was listed as CEO and MD. That is where TISG outsourced the information prior to publishing the article.
A check today on the Century Bank website lists Mr. Al-Dereai as MD and CEO. (See picture below), leading readers to believe that the latter is indeed the MD and CEO of the bank.
The letter also complained about the links between the bank, its Shariah advisory Bait Al-Mashura and the 1MDB.
TISG never said Bait Al-Mashura or Dr. Al-Dereai were linked to the 1MDB.
Last week, the Wall Street Journal published an article in which it linked the Century Bank Corp to a failed deal with people linked to the 1MDB.
It also said the Mauritius financial regulator alerted the FBI and the bid failed to materialize.