1MDB Drops JPMorgan, Coutts from US$1.1 Billion Lawsuit

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 13:  Malaysia’s state-owned fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) has officially withdrawn its legal action against JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Coutts & Co., according to a report by The Edge.

The two banks were previously named as defendants in a lawsuit filed in 2021, which accused them of negligence, breach of contract, conspiracy to defraud, and dishonest assistance in connection with their roles in the multibillion-dollar 1MDB scandal.

Originally, 1MDB had sought to recover US$1.1 billion from Deutsche Bank AG, US$800 million from JPMorgan, and US$1 billion from Coutts.

The decision to drop JPMorgan follows the bank’s August 2025 settlement, in which it agreed to pay RM1.4 billion (approximately US$300 million) to the Malaysian government. The settlement resolved all current and potential claims related to 1MDB.

Coutts & Co, a private bank based in Switzerland and part of NatWest Group, was also released from the suit, though the terms of its resolution were not disclosed.

The 1MDB scandal, one of the world’s largest financial corruption cases, involved the misappropriation of about US$4.5 billion from the fund between 2009 and 2015. The embezzled money was allegedly siphoned through a complex web of offshore accounts and shell companies, implicating bankers and public officials across several countries.

The Malaysian government continues to pursue legal actions and settlements with other institutions and individuals linked to the scandal as part of its ongoing recovery efforts.

1MDB was originally established in 2009 as a strategic development fund aimed at driving national investment projects but later became synonymous with global corruption and financial mismanagement.