Singapore—After being charged in March this year with four counts of fraud for allegedly raising at least S$1 billion on non-existent commodity trades, a local trader faces fresh charges of forging bank documents.
Ng Yu Zhi, 34, built a fortune on lies to investors, reported Bloomberg earlier this month, which he spent on a lavish lifestyle that included a Pagani Huarya supercar, a three-story villa, and other luxuries.
But Bloomberg reported on Monday (Apr 26) that Ng’s legal woes are far from over.
He has been charged with fraudulently making a false electronic record to show that US$60 million (S$79.5 million) was transferred from the Citibank account of Envy Asset Management Trading to another account in February, according to a new charge sheet seen by Bloomberg News.
Ng was a director of Envy Asset Management Trading, a company that ceased to be active in February this year, according to an earlier Bloomberg report.
The electronic record had been made for the purpose of committing fraud, according to the charge sheet.
In addition to this, Ng has been charged with fraudulently making a false electronic record that showed a combined balance of US$303 million (S$401.6 million) in the company’s Citibank accounts in March this year.
The trader now faces a total of 11 charges.
According to the police, Ng’s alleged criminal activity is one of Singapore’s biggest suspected investment fraud schemes. It is also the latest in a row of financial scandals in the city-state, including that which rocked the oil giant Hin Leong, which filed for bankruptcy.
In March, Ng was charged with two counts of cheating and two of fraudulent trading.
The Commercial Affairs Department of Singapore Police Force seized S$100 million of assets from Ng, including the Pagani Huayra supercar, which is valued at between S$7 million and S$8 million; as well as his Porsche 911 GT3.
Two companies where Ng was a director, Envy Asset Management and Envy Global Trading, have sought to be put under interim judicial management.
Both companies are also being investigated by the police.
Even though there is little known about Ng’s transactions, court proceedings show that he won investors over by claiming average quarterly gains of 15 per cent, which Bloomberg says rivals the performance of the best hedge fund managers around the globe.
At present, Ng is free on a S$1.5 million bail, but is subject to electronic monitoring. His lawyer Davinder Singh, the executive chairman of Davinder Singh Chambers, did not respond to Bloomberg’s queries.
Whether or not the disgraced trader has entered a plea is still unknown.
/TISG
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