SINGAPORE, Dec 28 — Former oil magnate Lim Oon Kuin, commonly known as OK Lim, and his two children, Lim Huey Ching and Evan Lim Chee Meng, have been declared bankrupt, according to the Singapore government gazette published yesterday.
Channel News Asia (CNA) reported that the declaration follows their consent in September to a court judgment requiring them to pay US$3.5 billion (RM15.5 billion), a sum equivalent to the unsecured debts of Hin Leong Trading as of April 2020. Hin Leong, once one of Asia’s largest oil traders, is now in compulsory liquidation.
The bankruptcy order, effective from December 19, was formalised after the family acknowledged they lacked sufficient assets to settle claims, CNA added.
Trustees Leow Quek Shiong and Seah Roh Lin of BDO Advisory will oversee the management of their bankruptcy estates.
The consent judgment concluded a civil trial initiated in August 2023 by liquidators of Hin Leong.
While the Lim family had been expected to testify, the agreement brought the proceedings to an end.
A consent judgment reflects an agreement between all involved parties and serves as the formal resolution of a case.
Liquidators had alleged that Hin Leong suffered US$808 million in losses from futures and swaps between 2010 and 2020.
These losses were reportedly concealed by overstating profits by US$2.1 billion, enabling the company to appear profitable while being “massively insolvent.”
The US$3.5 billion judgment aligns with claims made by liquidators against the Lim family.
Separately, OK Lim was convicted in May 2024 for cheating and abetting forgery, part of a trade financing fraud described as one of Singapore’s most severe.
He received a 17-and-a-half-year prison sentence last month and is currently appealing the verdict.
