Mizuho Bank Takes Legal Action Against Radiant World
Mizuho Bank has filed a case against the Singapore operating entity of iron ore trader Radiant World in the city-state’s Supreme Court, according to the court’s website. The bank, a unit of Mizuho Financial Group, is seeking an injunction against Radiant World Corporation, a court listing showed. The listing did not provide details of the injunction sought.
Mizuho Bank declined to comment. A spokesperson for Radiant World did not immediately comment outside U.K. business hours.
Police Raid and Trader Cutoffs
Singapore police raided Radiant World’s local office last week and questioned some employees, according to people familiar with the matter. The action is part of an investigation into the company’s transactions after some counterparties raised concerns about allegedly falsified documents.
The Singapore police confirmed they were looking into Radiant World last Thursday, saying reports had been lodged against the trader without indicating who had made the complaints. They said investigations were ongoing and further details were not available.
Several major commodity traders have cut ties with Radiant World amid concerns that it provided invoices or other documents to its banks that were not valid. Some banks have frozen its accounts and trading houses have severed ties on concerns the commodity trader had supplied invalid invoices to raise financing.
Company Response and Other Investigations
Radiant World declined to comment in response to questions for this story. In a separate statement, the company said: “The company is engaging with the relevant authorities, and it would not be appropriate to comment further while those processes are ongoing.” It also said it would not litigate the company’s affairs through the media.
In a July statement, Radiant World said the claims against it were inaccurate and unsubstantiated. The company has denied wrongdoing, saying it conducts its business to the highest commercial and legal standards.
Pinkesh Nahar founded Radiant World in the early 2000s, according to the company’s website, which says it trades more than 80 million metric tons of iron ore annually.
The U.S. Justice Department and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission are also investigating transactions involving Radiant World and its creditors.
According to Bloomberg News, Deutsche Bank and KBC Group have frozen some of Radiant World’s Singapore bank accounts, while some other lenders have suspended credit lines.