1MDB Backed Jho Low's £1Billion London <b>Hotel</b> Bid! EXCLUSIVE <b>...</b> - Hotel in Sarawak Blog |
- 1MDB Backed Jho Low's £1Billion London <b>Hotel</b> Bid! EXCLUSIVE <b>...</b>
- How 1MDB Backed Jho Low's Private Equity Splash! FURTHER <b>...</b>
- Indonesian woman found dead at <b>hotel</b> : my <b>Sarawak</b> – News <b>...</b>
- <b>Kuching</b> division defends title at Tadarus Al-Quran and Nasyid Festival
| 1MDB Backed Jho Low's £1Billion London <b>Hotel</b> Bid! EXCLUSIVE <b>...</b> Posted: 02 May 2014 03:56 PM PDT   Splashing champagne with celebrity hireling Paris Hilton – is Jho Low's funder Malaysia's sovereign wealth fund 1MDB ? For well over a year Malaysia's mystery tycoon, Taek Jho Low has been adamantly denying his links with the shadowy sovereign wealth fund 1 Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB). As recently as this March the US public relations firm Edleman issued a statement on Jho Low's behalf, again denying that his flamboyant investment activities are supported with Malaysian public money borrowed by the fund. The statement, which was made to the online business news portal Mkini Biz vouched:
But, now research by Sarawak Report has identified UK High Court evidence, which shows that Mr Taik Jho Low's claims are at best misleading and certainly open to serious question. We can demonstrate that in January 2011 1MDB submitted a letter on behalf of Low and his private equity company The Wynton Group pledging to back a share purchase of the prestige Coroin hotel group (which includes the leading London hotels Claridges, The Connaught and The Berkeley) against rival bids from the UK's Barclay brothers. That pledge backed Wynton to the tune of a final offer of £1.028 billion (RM5.7billion)!  Top London hotel – Claridges As it turned out, the shareholders turned down the Malaysian bid, in favour of what they viewed as a more reliable lower offer for the shares. Evidence backed by a judge The details of the Coroin bid and the involvement by 1MDB in Jho Low's privately owned company Wynton Group's attempted buy out are clearly detailed in a 158 page judgement produced on 10th August 2012 by Justice David Richards of the Chancery Division of Britain's Royal Courts of Justice. In the interests of transparency it is available for all to read online.  Judgement proves the active link between 1MDB and Jho Low's company The Wynton Group. The judgement details how in 2011 rival bidders were attempting to buy up a controlling number of shares in the Coroin Group from the distressed businessman Derek Quinlan (approximately 39% of the company). The property magnates known as the Barclay brothers were to emerge as the victors in the takeover, but other shareholders questioned their methods, resulting in the legal case and ensuing judgement by Justice Richards. In the course of that judgement the judge recorded a number of other bids that had been made during the takeover rivalry and one of those came from Malaysia's Jho Low representing The Wynton Group along with his brother.  Jho Low's business card was advertised by his printer! The judge made it clear on a number of occasions that Low was representing himself and his company as an entity backed by a Malaysian Government 'sovereign wealth fund'. In this court document the British judge begins by relating:
However, it is clear that the British businessmen selling the shares were not convinced either by Mr Low or the trustworthiness of the Malaysian Government support, according to the judge. As he put it "these [offers] were not at the time taken seriously by most of the shareholders" [paragraph 50]. 1MDB provided a written support offering to back Jho Low's bid  Nice spot in the Petronas Tower. But Jho Low did not give up. He later came back with further strengthened bids and he produced a number of written third party assurances as well, including a letter of 15th January 2011 from 1MDB confirming its support of the offer, as recorded by the judge. It is these which provide the damning evidence that despite all the denials by the Prime Minister Najib Razak, who is the Chairman of the fund and by Jho Low himself, the private equity dealings of this youthful tycoon have been linked to and closely supported by 1MDB. The twenty six year old big-spending 'tycoon' also had the backing of a Malaysian bank explained the judge and Jho Low himself claimed in a further letter that financing for the offer had been in principle fully underwritten by the Malaysian government:
As the above makes clear, however, despite the formal letter of support by 1 Malaysian (sic) Berhad, the UK shareholders did not feel confident it was a reliable offer. The judge explains:
The comments show a devastating lack of confidence by these top businessmen in the credibility of Jho Low and also the Malaysian Government. However, it confirms that the offer referred to by Justice Richards had been placed on the table with the written backing of 1MDB for a bid of just over £1billion pounds. Denials Contrast this enormous commitment with the series of denials, as all concerned have sought to distance 1MDB from the controversial night-clubbing pal of Najib's step-son Riza Aziz.
Despite this, in company CV's Low does acknowledge links to unspecified sovereign wealth funds.  Which sovereign wealth funds? He told the shareholders of Coroin that it was Malaysia's 1MDB who was backing him, not funds from the Middle East! The line appears to be that his investors are all from the Middle East and are the parents of kids he made friends with at school in the UK and US. It's a pity that Jho Low's most famous and closest acquaintance appears to be the fellow Malaysian Riza Aziz, whose Dad is the PM and head of 1MDB from which billions are currently inadequately accounted for. Time to stop hiding the truth With so much information now contradicting the party-loving Jho Low's various versions of his life story, leading from college grad to major tycoon in no time flat, it is time for the truth.  Jho Low and star Leonardo di Caprio at the premiere of Wolf of Wall Street in Paris The Chairman of 1MDB, Prime Minister Najib Razak, should explain transparently exactly which projects the fund has supported or offered to support, rather than relying on the pathetically over-due annual report that came out last week, which admits merely that the money is being invested by an anonymous fund manager in the Cayman Islands on anonymous projects with no guarantees whatsoever that the funds are secure! These are billions of ringgit of public money borrowed at high interest rates supposedly to invest in Malaysian development. Yet the money has gone no where near Malaysia and no no one is telling where it is or what it is being used for. It is even being invested at a lower rate of interest than Najib borrowed it for in the first place! We have questions The only exception to this news blackout about what has happened to all this borrowed public money has come from the evidence we have now obtained from this British law case, showing that back in 2011 1MDB funds were offered to secure the purchase of some London Hotels by a private company owned by 26 year old Taek Jho Low! Sarawak Report is therefore entitled to question certain matters that are hard to explain, unless Jho Low is still being supported by 1MDB. Key queries include: - Was the US$100 million upfront investment by Najib's step-son Riza Aziz's company Red Granite Productions in the film Wolf of Wall Street in any way financed or guaranteed by 1MDB? - Does Jho Low's lavish expenditure on entertainment, which has broken records in nightclubs in many of the world's most expensive hot spots, owe in any way to support from Malaysia's publicly funded sovereign wealth fund? - Was the reason Jho Low gained a rare personal credit at the end of Wolf of Wall Street because it was he who financed the entire film project, as people who worked on the project understood was the case? - Since Jho Low has been demonstrated as having employed a guarantee from 1MDB to back his personal buy-out attempt of a London hotel group, is it not fair to conclude that Jho Low is in fact an agent for the fund and is acting to transfer this public money into private hands abroad rather than investing it in Malaysian development? Libel?  Najib step-son Riza Aziz, Red Granite partner Joey McFarland and Jho Low at the New York premier of Wolf of Wall Street When Sarawak Report first asked about the sources of Riza Aziz's enormous funds, libel threats were issued by the Hollywood lawyers Loeb & Loeb, threatening immediate action unless the posts were removed. The posts were neither removed nor amended and four months later the threats have not been carried out. Indeed it is now Loeb & Loeb who are removed from the brief and Red Granite Productions have hired a separate legal team. A subpoena is believed to exist for Riza Aziz's financial records with the Hollywood wealth management company NKSFB, where his account manager is Debra Johnson. Debra is the wife of Channing Johnson, who was the senior partner at Loeb & Loeb in charge of overseeing the legal threats against Sarawak Report by Red Granite Productions. Sign up to receive regular updates from Sarawak Report |
| How 1MDB Backed Jho Low's Private Equity Splash! FURTHER <b>...</b> Posted: 03 May 2014 10:11 AM PDT   So much money he just throws away champagne that represents the monthly minimum wage in Malaysia per bottle Following our earlier exclusive expose Sarawak Report has unearthed further exclusive evidence proving the links between the mystery tycoon Jho Low and Malaysia's sovereign wealth fund One Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB). It shows that in 2011 1MDB bankrolled a multi-million euro debt buy-out in Ireland, which formed a key plank in Jho Low's strategy to get a controlling share of a London Hotel chain for his Wynton private equity group. This new evidence flies in the face of denials as late as last month by Low that he has had any involvement or received any benefit from the public fund. It also calls into question why 1MDB's chief officer claimed recently that the role of Jho Low in IMDB was "zero". The chairman in charge of the sovereign wealth fund is the Prime Minister Najib Razak himself, who established its foundation as one of his first actions after taking office back in 2009. Low admits to being a close friend of the Prime Minister's wife and her son Riza Aziz, who credited Low at the end of his Hollywood blockbuster Wolf of Wall Street with a notice of 'special thanks'. Irish debt buy out  Mayfair's Connaught Hotel was part of the group In our earlier expose Sarawak Report revealed how Jho Low and his private equity company Wynton Group were backed by 1MDB in a failed attempt to buy out the London hotel company that owns Claridges. Justice David Richards detailed in his judgement on a related case how as part of his bid Low purchased debt in the hands of Ireland's National Asset Management Agency ("NAMA"), which had been taken over from a distressed property tycoon Derek Quinlan. The purpose was to give Low greater leverage in the hotel group on which the debt had been secured:
But, where did the youthful Penang born businessman, who admits his family is not especially wealthy, find the money to buy out this debt amounting some €60million? The judge did not explore this matter of funding, which was not directly relevant to the case he was adjudicating. However, there was plenty about it at the time in the Irish Press, since Quinlan was a famous local businessman. Tellingly, these press reports make no mention of Jho Low, because the actual funder behind the purchase of this debt, according to the Irish Independent and other news outlets, was none other than Malaysia's sovereign wealth fund One Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB)!  It is well-documented that Jho Low was the individual who fronted these negotiations. Till now it was not known in Malaysia that he was being bankrolled by 1MDB
Jho Low bankrolled by 1MDB So, it is clear from the coverage of the deal that the recognised bidder for Quinlan's Nama debt was understood in Ireland to be not 26 year old college grad Jho Low, but the deep pockets of the public fund 1MDB. This debt purchase was an integral part of Jho Low's private equity bid to take over the controlling shareholding of the Coroin Hotel group in London and the UK court judgement makes clear that he was the man who fronted the approach to Nama and who had purchased the shares through a company associated with the Wynton Group called JQ2 (see above). Later on 17th April the Irish Independent confirmed the deal had taken place. Yet, again, the Irish newspaper coverage referred to a purchase by 1MDB and not Jho Low. It had brought a fat €60million (RM271million) profit to the Irish asset management agency Nama:  Successful sale of risky debt to Malaysia at well above the price others were prepared to pay.
The UK's Sunday Times newspaper also covered the story and likewise reported that the purchaser of the debt was 1MDB:  Sunday Times said the purchase by 1MDB was for €57million – again no mention of Jho Low's Wynton private equity group! The coverage therefore leaves little doubt that Jho Low's bankroller in this multi-million ringgit purchase of debt (at great profit to the Irish) was none other than 1MDB – and it was the real funder, Malaysia's sovereign wealth fund, which gained the attention of the press rather than the private equity partner, Jho Low of Wynton Group/ JQ2!  Partying in Hollywood has become Jho Low's latest high profile activity – is this part of another private venture for Joh Low and is it also funded by 1MDB? Time to start telling the truth about Jho Low and 1MDB? Given the constant string of denials from both Jho Low and 1MDB that the youthful playboy has any ties whatsoever to the sovereign wealth fund and its investments this matter requires immediate explanation. Why is Malaysia's sovereign wealth fund, which is supposed to be investing in development in Malaysia, evidently funding risky private equity ventures by Jho Low's companies? Does this all mean that Jho Low is in fact the lead investor for 1MDB and if so what is his profit margin? Or is Jho Low in fact just a front for other investors who can't be named? Finally, does not Jho Low's involvement with 1MDB and his known close friendship with the family of its Chairman, Najib Razak, provide the most convincing explanation up to date for his, so far undisclosed, sources of investment income and his extraordinary sudden wealth? Surely, the Malaysian public have a right to know if its development funds are being handled and invested through the private equity transactions of this high-spending, night-club addict who is still in his 20s!  Tipsy tycoon – is this the man driving the investment decisions of 1MDB? Sign up to receive regular updates from Sarawak Report |
| Indonesian woman found dead at <b>hotel</b> : my <b>Sarawak</b> – News <b>...</b> Posted: 03 May 2014 11:58 AM PDT
Police personnel seen carrying the body of the Indonesian national out of the hotel room. MIRI: A woman was found dead on Saturday afternoon in a budget hotel room at Rice Mill Road, grotesquely sitting at the edge of a bed by a female cleaner, which police have classified as sudden death. The cleaner immediately sounded the alarm on her discovery around 12pm. According to sources, the cleaner had knocked on the door of the deceased's room for routine cleaning. When her knock went unanswered, the cleaner used a spare key — leading to the shocking find. On unlocking the door, the 52-year-old cleaner saw a woman sitting motionless at the edge of the bed. She approached the body which was in sitting repose, which she then felt to be cold and stiff. The cleaner ran helter-skelter downstairs to tell the hotel staff. The deceased has been identified as Yenni Safetri, a 44-year-old Indonesian woman. Initial investigation revealed no physical injuries found on her body. Miri police chief ACP Gan Tian Kee, when contacted, confirmed receiving a report. "The case is being investigated as sudden death," he said. He said probable cause of death was believed to be a drug overdose (OD), as police found a small black bag containing several packets of drugs believed to be Syabu (crystal meth) and drug paraphernalia. The deceased was clad only in a T-shirt when the body was found. According to sources, the woman had checked into the budget hotel on Friday evening around 7pm, with a man seen with her at the time. Category: Sarawak  About the Author (Author Profile) |
| <b>Kuching</b> division defends title at Tadarus Al-Quran and Nasyid Festival Posted: 30 Apr 2014 12:41 PM PDT MIRI: Kuching division has successfully defended their position as overall champion at the state-level 40th Schools Tadarus Al-Quran and Nasyid Festival which ended here yesterday. They were overall champion in both the secondary and primary school categories where they emerged victorious in 11 of the total of 18 categories contested. "I am very happy and this is the best achievement compared to the past years although we also won the overall titles. This year we won 80 per cent of all the categories contested. We prepared our participants well including a one-week centralised training in a hotel in Kuching before coming here. Thank you all including the 33 participants and 14 of our officials," said Kuching contingent head Abang Mostapha Abang Aerdwaini. The Kuching champions in the secondary school categories were Thaqif Anaqi Busri (Tilawah Al Quran – boys), Izz Irfan Zaharuddin and Siti Marhammah Wahbi (Hafazan – boys and girls), Abang Ifham Syafawi Abang Abdul Razak and Zalila Atifah Sahin (syarahan – boys and girls), Muhd Azinudin Annuar and Ayu Nazira Ahadi (Seni Khat – boys and girls) while the primary school champions were Muhammad Alfaiz Daud an Nur Ismah Ismail (Hafazan – boys and girls) and Azfar Haziq Abdullah (Story Telling based on Al-Quran). Khalifah Group from Kuching won the best solo for secondary school category, while Ar-Rayyan Group from Miri is the best solo for primary school category. The other champions included two secondary school students from Miri (Nurul Izzah Mukhali – Tilawah Al-Quran – girls) and Sautul Falihin (Nasyid), and in the Primary School category, two from Samarahan – Mohd Haqquil Aiman Ramani (Tilawah Al-Quran – boys) and Shoutul Najihin (Nasyid), from Bintulu – Aina Yazmin Natasya Abdul Aziz (Tilawah Al-Quran – girls), from Sarikei – Ayuni Hazirah Daniel Liting (story telling). The winners received their prizes in the form of trophies and cash from the director of Education, Datu Abdillah Adam. Among those present were the head of the Islamic Sector of Education Department, Al Fadhil Ustaz Arif Sa'ya, Miri District Education Officer and organising chairman Rosnani Yunus, SNK Agama Miri principal Roslan Abu Hassan and senior government officials. Abdullah said all the champions will represent Sarawak in the national-level competition to be held from the middle of this month. "This year, we expect them to win more categories and I wish them all the best and hope they prepare themselves well for the national level competition. Last year, we won quite a number but not the overall champion and judging from the improved performance today, we expect to improve too at the national level," Abdulah noted. A total of 384 students from all the divisions took part in the three-day festival held simultaneously at two venues – SMK Agama and the Sarawak Teachers' Training from April 28.  |
Loading ...
| You are subscribed to email updates from Hotel in Sarawak - Google Blog Search To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
| Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610 | |
No comments:
Post a Comment