KUALA LUMPUR (May 6): Padini Holdings Bhd (KL:PADINI) clarified that none of its employees, officers, or management were detained by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).
In a Bursa Malaysia filing, the company said the clarification was made in response to media reports on Wednesday about eight individuals being detained by the MACC.
“The company remains fully committed to cooperating with the MACC in relation to the ongoing investigations,” said Padini in the filing.
The MACC told The Edge when contacted that the individuals arrested were linked to several frozen bank accounts involving multiple companies, including Padini.
Padini, prior to this, had said that the investigation involving 21 of its accounts concerns external parties, and not its employees or management. The company also said it is not aware of any wrongdoing on its part and views the account freeze as a standard part of the investigation process.
Specialty fertilisers company Cropmate Bhd (KL:CRPMATE) said that RM12.21 million in its bank accounts and those of a key subsidiary were frozen as part of an investigation by the MACC on April 27.
The company said it is not aware of any wrongdoing and described the freeze as a standard step in the investigation. However, the account freeze raised concerns from its external auditor about Cropmate’s ability to continue operating, due to uncertainty over how long the restrictions would last and their financial impact.
Cropmate later said that some of its bank accounts have since been released by the MACC.
Shares of Padini were down by two sen or 1.34% at RM1.47 on Wednesday’s closing, valuing the group at RM1.45 billion.