Former 1MDB CEO relied on Low's assurances for Petrosaudi deal

KUALA LUMPUR — Former 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) chief executive officer Datuk Shahrol Azral Ibrahim has acknowledged that he proceeded with the Petrosaudi International Limited investment largely based on assurances provided by financier Low Taek Jho, rather than conducting thorough independent due diligence.

The testimony, delivered during ongoing legal proceedings related to the scandal-plagued sovereign wealth fund, underscores questions about governance and oversight during the period when billions of ringgit were invested with limited accountability. Shahrol indicated that he accepted Low's word regarding the viability and legitimacy of the partnership with the Saudi Arabian oil services company.

The Petrosaudi deal, inked in 2009, marked an early significant investment for 1MDB and set the stage for subsequent transactions that have been scrutinized by investigators worldwide. The investment later became a focal point for anti-corruption authorities examining how 1MDB's funds were deployed.

Shahrol's admission highlights the operational dynamics within 1MDB during its formative years, when decisions of enormous financial consequence were apparently made with minimal institutional checks. His testimony adds to a growing body of evidence suggesting that proper corporate governance structures were either absent or circumvented during the fund's critical early operations.

The former CEO's account continues to provide investigators and courts with crucial details about the decision-making processes that enabled one of the world's largest financial scandals to unfold largely unchecked for several years.