Malaysia charges businessman for Shariah bond investment fraud

Malaysia’s Securities Commission (SC) has charged Razrul Anwar Rusli, 44, with defrauding five investors of MYR3.16m (USD739,540) through a fictitious scheme called “Amal Trust”, allegedly involving non-existent Shariah-compliant bonds. Razrul faces eight charges under the Capital Markets and Services Act 2007 (CMSA) for misrepresentation and two additional charges for unlicensed capital market activities and misleading conduct. The SC said Razrul falsely held himself out as licensed to deal in securities and used misleading descriptions on the Amal Trust website. The alleged offences occurred between April 2019 and April 2021 across Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, and Penang. If convicted, he faces up to 10 years in jail and fines up to NYR10m. Razrul pleaded not guilty and was released on MYR500,000 bail with two sureties.