Former Singapore Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong's son quietly left the crypto bank's board. The move comes as he faces scrutiny over alleged dealings at a now-insolvent Singapore marine fuel and cargo trader.
The Swiss-based bank removed board member Goh Jin Hian from its website, though he remains listed as a Seba director in the Swiss commercial registry. Goh is being sued for $156 million by creditors of IPP, a fuel and cargo trader where he was a board member until last year, «The Straits Times» (behind paywall) reported earlier this week.
A Seba spokeswoman said Goh resigned «for personal reasons» last week, without elaborating. Goh, who is the son of ex-Singapore leader Goh Chok Tong, is being pursued by IPP's biggest creditors, Maybank and Societé Générale. The banks claim they are owed $88.3 million and $81.3 million respectively, in a suit filed last Friday.
Crypto Bank Turmoil
Seba last month appointed Paivi Rekonen, a prominent ex-UBS banker as its new chair. Its previous overseer left abruptly amid a strategy dispute, as finews.com reported last month. The bank, which counts Julius Baer among its backers, is expected to tap investors for new funds shortly.
At IPP, $156 million was from drawdowns of trade financing between June and July 2019, which banks alleged were «non-existent or sham transactions,» according to Singapore court documents. The banks accuse Goh of breaching his fiduciary duty to ensure that the creditors' assets aren't «dissipated or exploited.»
Criminal Investigation
The firm lost its operating license earlier this year and was placed under judicial administration amid financial stress. Goh, who is also chairman of Singapore blue-chip New Silkroutes, is the subject of a separate investigation by the Singapore Police Force's Commercial Affairs Department, or CAD.
In the meantime, Goh has stepped down as chairman of Cordlife, a consumer healthcare company that provides blood banking services, while remaining on the board as an independent director, the company said on Tuesday. Goh's father was Singapore's prime minister from 1990 until 2004 and retired from politics earlier this year.
