Kuwait pension fund wins London case over money stolen by late director

LONDON, Nov 5 (Reuters) - Kuwait's public pension fund on Thursday won its London lawsuit against asset manager Man Group EMG.L and others, in which it accused various banks and investment companies of laundering bribes paid to its late director, Fahad Al Rajaan.

The Public Institution for Social Security, which operates Kuwait's social security and pension scheme, had sued the estate of Al Rajaan at London's High Court in 2019, accusing him of siphoning off roughly $1 billion during his tenure.

Judge Richard Jacobs said in a summary of his ruling that "PIFSS' claims for compensation ... were, broadly speaking, successful", but that the sums owed had not been decided and would have to take account of settlements PIFSS had reached.

Al Rajaan was involved in "proven corruption on a breathtaking scale, involving many individuals who had reached senior positions in public office or the financial services industries", Jacobs added.

Man Group said the court's findings related to two subsidiaries and two ex-employees and it disagreed with the judgment "in respect of both liability and quantum".

It did not say if it would appeal against the ruling.

PIFSS was seeking about $156 million from Man Group, alleging the London-listed asset manager was involved in bribes paid to Al Rajaan to obtain PIFSS' investment in Man products.

Jacobs ruled that PIFSS was entitled to recover around $155 million, though he said the final sum to be paid would have to be adjusted to reflect settlements with other defendants.

The lawsuit was also brought against EFG Bank EFGN.S, which had been fighting the case but announced in September that it had reached a settlement with PIFSS.

Al Rajaan, who was PIFSS director from 1984 to 2014, was convicted in his absence of corruption and embezzling public money in Kuwait in 2016. He died in London in 2022.

Over the course of two decades, Al Rajaan and his associates received around $1 billion, described as commission payments that banks and investment companies did not need to pay.