The Malaysian government has endorsed the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) probe into KWAP’s RM163.4 million (about US$47.7 million) investment loss in Indonesian aquaculture startup eFishery made in July 2023 [1, 2, 3, 4, 5].
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said he met with KWAP management and emphasized full cooperation with the MACC inquiry, stating, "I do not believe there are such elements. I would like to stress that we cannot compromise on any fraud or corruption" [6]. He further supported the MACC's efforts to investigate any negligence, breach of law, or corruption involved, urging full cooperation from KWAP [6, 2].
MACC’s investigation focuses on KWAP’s governance, approval process, and compliance regarding the eFishery investment, including possible criminal misconduct or corruption [7, 8]. Investigators recently visited KWAP headquarters to collect related documents in preparation for disclosure of findings expected soon [7, 8].
Preliminary investigations have found no evidence of wrongdoing or corruption in KWAP’s investment process [6, 1, 2, 3]. KWAP conducted an internal probe and maintains its investment decisions are made independently by a professional panel without government interference and do not require Finance Ministry approval [2, 3].
KWAP held approximately 2.51% of eFishery’s shares at the time of investment [2, 3]. Although initial reports estimated losses near RM200 million, the confirmed amount is about RM163 million [1, 4, 5, 7, 8]. eFishery’s co-founder Gibran Huzaifah was sentenced to nine years in prison by an Indonesian court for breach of trust and money laundering tied to a sophisticated, organized financial fraud involving manipulated statements [2, 3, 4, 5, 9, 10].
Major global investors such as Temasek, SoftBank, and Sequoia Capital were also deceived by the fraud [11, 2, 3]. KWAP can pursue civil litigation to recover losses, and mutual legal assistance may be used if criminal elements are proven [9, 10].
KWAP manages a total fund of about RM195 billion as of 2025, generating RM18 billion in investment income in 2024 [4, 5]. The RM163 million loss is less than 1% of its 2024 investment income and under 0.1% of its total fund size, posing no risk to pension payments for civil servants [4]. Finance Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz said pension obligations remain unchanged regardless of the eFishery investment outcome [4].
Prime Minister Anwar noted KWAP posted a net profit of RM12.9 billion recently but this falls short of Malaysia’s annual pension bill of around RM45 billion [11, 12]. KWAP also invests in local startups including LaPasar and ZUS Coffee [12].
The MACC investigation continues, with findings expected to be disclosed soon. The probe aims to ensure accountability and explore avenues to recover the RM163 million lost in eFishery.
