Hin Leong scandal adds tarnish to fading Singapore brand

Disgraced oil trader covered up $800m in losses

20200502 HinLeong

One of the world's top private oil traders, the collapse of Hin Leong is one of the largest trading failures in Singapore history. © Reuters

DYLAN LOH, Nikkei staff writer

SINGAPORE -- To many Singapore observers, the most unsettling aspect of the collapse of Hin Leong Trading was not the speed with which volatile markets pushed one of Asia's biggest private oil traders $4 billion into the red.

More worrying was the admission from the company's billionaire founder Lim Oon Kuin, one of Singapore's most respected business leaders, that he had directed his finance department not to disclose $800 million worth of trading losses.

Sponsored Content

About Sponsored ContentThis content was commissioned by Nikkei's Global Business Bureau.