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February 24, 2025 | 08:50 am
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Daya Anagata Nusantara Investment Board or BPI Danantara was officially launched today, Monday. The discourse and the establishment of this agency have raised concerns among the public regarding the potential for misuse.
Danantara is expected to manage assets worth more than US$900 billion or around Rp14 quadrillion. However, Prabowo's ambition is considered highly risky by a number of experts.
Some even equate the presence of Danantara with major financial scandals such as the case of 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) in Malaysia. 1MDB was founded by the Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak in 2009.
This investment board became a major financial scandal involving the misuse of state investment funds amounting to billions of US dollars through non-transparent transactions and cross-border money laundering. It was reported that many cases of corruption were committed by Najib Razak and his cronies which originated from 1MDB.
The funds, initially intended to finance infrastructure and other economic-related transactions in Malaysia, were diverted to fund lavish lifestyles.
This included financing films such as The Wolf of Wall Street and purchasing Dustheads, a painting by the American artist Jean-Michel Basquiat.
In 2012, officials from 1MDB met with the American multinational investment bank and financial services company Goldman Sachs in Hong Kong to discuss bond deals. Both parties agreed to collaborate for 1MDB funds. Between 2012 and 2013, the company arranged three bonds worth US$6.5 billion for 1MDB with a total cost of US$593 million or 9 percent of the total.
The cost was higher than the average cost paid for such deals. Malaysian prosecutors stated that Goldman Sachs made false statements and omitted key facts in offering circulars for the bonds it sold for Malaysia's 1MDB.
In February 2016, the United States' Federal Bureau of Investigation or FBI began investigating the relationship between Tim Leissner, a senior regional executive at Goldman Sachs, and former Malaysian PM Najib Razak. Leissner pleaded guilty in the US to conspiracy related to money laundering and bribery of 1MDB funds. It is suspected that Leissner had close ties with Malaysian officials and may have used bribes to advance Goldman's business in the country.
This case involves at least three figures, including the following.
1. Najib Razak
The Malaysian public prosecutor filed a total of 32 charges against Najib. This means Najib faces a 20-year sentence. If proven guilty, Najib, who is 64 years old, will spend the rest of his life in prison.
The prosecutor claims there is approximately US$700 million or around Rp10.2 trillion in funds. These funds are suspected to have originated from 1MDB.
Najib also faces other charges of receiving money from SRC International, a subsidiary of 1MDB. The penalty for this also reaches 20 years.
2. Rosmah Mansor
Najib Razak's second wife faces 17 charges. Some of these charges relate to money laundering practices and tax evasion related to the 1Malaysia Development Berhad or 1MDB scandal.
The prosecutor stated there is an amount of RM7 million or around Rp24 billion involved in this money laundering case. Rosmah, 66, is undergoing a separate trial at the same courthouse in the capital city, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Rosmah is also involved in another case, which is the allegation of receiving RM189 million or Rp656 billion in bribes. This bribe money came from Jepak Holdings Sdn Bhd, which won a government contract worth RM1.25 billion for the construction of a solar power plant.
3. Jho Low
Jho Low was born in Penang into a wealthy family. His father, Larry Low Hock Peng, was an executive at an investment company called MWE Holdings Bhd. Meanwhile, his grandfather, Low Meng Tak, built the family's wealth in China and Thailand through the business of mining iron ore and liquor.
Najib stated that Jho Low was trusted because of his connections with the royal families of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Abu Dhabi. Najib admitted that he hoped Jho Low would use his connections to attract investments to Malaysia through 1MDB.
Hendrik Khoirul Muhid, Riani Sanusi Putri also contributed to the writing of this article.
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