US fund files Swiss criminal complaint against Radiant World, US court filing shows

By Reuters News

By Solomon Cefai

SINGAPORE, Sept 30 (Reuters) - A New York-based investment fund has made a criminal complaint in Switzerland against iron ore trader Radiant World and related companies alleging fraud and money laundering, a US court filing dated September 29 showed.

The filing in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York showed Mariner Atlantic Multi-Strategy LLC is seeking wire transfer records from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and payments system CHIPS as part of the discovery process in its case.

Mariner said it filed a criminal complaint on or around September 14 with the Geneva Public Prosecutor's Office against Radiant World and related entities as well as its founder Pinkesh Nahar.

Nahar and a Radiant World spokesperson did not respond to Reuters requests for comment or answer calls on Wednesday.

Radiant World has previously denied any wrongdoing, calling other claims inaccurate and unsubstantiated and saying it "conducts its business to the highest commercial and legal standards".

"Mariner has requested the opening of a criminal investigation, searches of premises in Geneva, and the seizure of bank accounts and assets in Switzerland," its US filing said.

The Geneva Public Prosecutor's Office declined to comment on whether or not a criminal complaint had been received.

Mariner's lawyer, Guillaume Tattevin, did not respond to requests for comment.

MOUNTING CHALLENGES

Radiant World has faced mounting challenges since banks and counterparties began distancing themselves amid concerns that invoices submitted to banks may not have been valid.

Mariner said in its filing that it lent Radiant World about $48.6 million in late June to finance its metals trading, underpinned by trade receivables.

After the funds were released to an account in the United Arab Emirates, Mariner found Radiant World had systematically "falsified commercial documents in order to simulate transactions and thereby obtain financing from international lenders, including Mariner, through fictitious trades", it said.

The fund did not provide evidence that Radiant World systematically falsified documents in the filing.

Mariner has been unable to recover any of the funds, it added in the filing.

Other creditors have launched legal actions against Radiant World in London and Singapore.

Last week, a judge installed KPMG as interim judicial manager for Radiant World's operating entity in Singapore in a case brought by Mizuho Bank. The KPMG managers did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Singapore's police force said in August that it was investigating Radiant World, without giving further details.

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