Wall Street fears over Jho Low connection

Jho-Low NEW YORK: There is concern among Wall Street companies whether those associated with Jho Low, or companies in which he has invested, may also be probed by the US Department of Justice.

One of these firms is Electrum Group LLC. In late 2012, Low and his company Jynwel Capital Ltd made a USD150 million investment in Electrum Group LLC, purchasing a 7 per cent stake in the firm.

The money that flowed from Low’s firm to Electrum has raised concerns about whether the investigation may affect Electrum or other Wall Street firms that may have received money from Low or others connected to the probe, according to a Wall Street Journal report.

Jho Low is being investigated by US authorities and the Department of Justice (DoJ) has filed civil forfeiture suits against Jho Low and several other individuals and companies.

According to the WSJ report which quotes the DoJ filing, Low was central to alleged fraud involving 1Malaysia Development Bhd, and “laundered more than USD400 million of funds”.

Electrum is run by Thomas Kaplan, one of the biggest investors in gold and silver shares in recent years and a member of the board of Manhattan’s 92nd Street Y.

Until recently, said the WSJ report, Low was a member of Electrum’s board. He and Kaplan are also on the board of a charity called Panthera that aims to protect tigers, lions and other big cats.

“There is no indication that Kaplan is being questioned by authorities or that he believed the money was coming from anyone other than Low and his firm,” it said.

The report said a spokesman for Low declined to comment.

“We have been monitoring this situation since the initial news reports,” a spokesman for Electrum was quoted as saying. “Accordingly, Electrum has taken steps to ensure that Jynwel’s investment and its associated profits have been safeguarded and sequestered while the matter is pending.”

The WSJ report noted that Jynwel’s investment in Electrum came at the same time that sovereign-wealth funds Mubadala Development Co, which the Abu Dhabi government owns, and the Kuwait Investment Authority, also invested in Kaplan’s firm.

The three parties bought a total stake of about 20 per cent in Electrum for USD450 million, the firm said.

Jynwel Capital joined groups of investors in the USD2.2 billion acquisition of EMI Music in 2011. The DoJ has already moved to seize the assets of EMI Music Publishing as part of its forfeiture action.