KUALA LUMPUR – Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has instructed Khazanah Nasional Bhd to conduct an internal audit to probe losses incurred by the sovereign wealth fund due to its failed investment in e-commerce platform Fashion Valet Sdn Bhd (FashionValet).
In a post on X today, Anwar, who also chairs Khazanah, stated that this “strict instruction” aligns with a prior mandate empowering the National Audit Department (NAD) to review 2,000 government-linked companies (GLCs).
Such audits, he said, are aimed at improving governance while ensuring that all involved GLCs fulfil their respective responsibilities and functions.
NAD is expected to audit 2,000 GLCs beginning November 1 after the recent approval of amendments to the Audit Act 1957, which strengthened the Auditor-General’s powers to enable a more comprehensive oversight of public spending in Malaysia.
Earlier today, Anwar said at an event in Penang that he will not block or interfere in the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission’s probe into the RM43.9 million worth of losses incurred by Khazanah and Permodalan Nasional Bhd (PNB) through its investments in FashionValet.
Khazanah, in 2018, had invested RM27 million into the country’s first local fashion e-commerce website while PNB had contributed RM20 million.
It was revealed in a parliamentary written reply earlier this week that Khazanah and PNB had sold their combined RM47 million stake in Fashion Valet for a mere RM3.1 million.
Following public backlash, Khazanah released a statement attributing the exit to challenges during the Covid-19 pandemic, which led FashionValet to shift from an e-commerce platform for ASEAN products to focusing on its in-house brands dUCk and Lilit.
PNB, meanwhile, has clarified that its investment in FashionValet was made using its proprietary fund and not the unit trust funds under Amanah Saham Nasional Bhd (ASNB) subscribed by the public.
Reiterating Khazanah’s point on the global pandemic affecting businesses, PNB also said its investment in FashionValet represented the GLC’s agenda to support “high-potential” Bumiputera companies.
Yesterday, FashionValet founders Datin Vivy Sofinas Yusof and her husband Datuk Fadzaruddin Shah Anuar announced their decision to step down from the company as part of a leadership change amid ongoing efforts to stabilise the business. – November 2, 2024