Zeti not informed of incoming ‘donations’ for Najib, court hears

Zeti Akhtar Aziz says she was only informed by the then AmBank managing director that Najib Razak had opened an account with the bank.

(FMT) – Former Bank Negara Malaysia governor Zeti Akhtar Aziz told the High Court in Najib Razak’s 1MDB trial she was never informed that the then prime minister would be receiving any “donations” via his bank account.

She said former AmBank managing director Cheah Tek Kuang met her on Jan 28, 2011, at her office to inform her that Najib had opened an account with the bank.

Zeti said Cheah told her Najib’s account was referred to as MR, a code under the AmPrivate Banking system.

Under this system, personal details, including the name of the account holder, are not visible to third parties.

“Nothing further was discussed and the meeting was short,” Zeti, a witness in the trial, testified.

“At no time during this meeting did Cheah ever mention any intended donations that were to be remitted into this account.”

Zeti also confirmed that the opening of Najib’s account with AmBank in 2011 complied with all banking regulations.

Last year, Cheah testified that he met Zeti a few days after Najib signed the necessary documents to open the account.

Cheah said he then informed Zeti at their meeting that Najib was expecting US$100 million from Saudi Arabia.

Najib is standing trial on 25 charges of abuse of power and money laundering over alleged 1MDB funds amounting to RM2.28 billion deposited into his AmBank accounts between February 2011 and December 2014.

The hearing before Justice Collin Lawrence Sequerah continues.