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KUALA LUMPUR: Berjaya Corporation Berhad Group of Companies has no interest in SEA Gamer Mall (SEAGM), a Perak-based company whose top executives are currently facing extradition proceedings to the United States on cybercrime charges, said the mogul Vincent Tan.
In a statement on September 18 (Friday), the Berjaya founder said that his participation in SEAGM, a digital trading platform for gamers, game developers and publishers, was entirely his personal investment.
“I want to clarify that Berjaya Corporation Berhad Group of Companies has no interest in SEAGM.
“I have also previously privately invested in another MOL online and gaming platform that I have since divested. My stake in SEAGM is entirely my personal investment, which I can choose to divest when the time is right,” he said.
READ: US Announces Charges Against Chinese and Malaysian Hackers
Mr. Tan also stated that his daughters, Nerine and Chryseis Tan, had no involvement in the management of SEAGM, as they had been nominated to the company’s board of directors as non-executive directors.
They had resigned before the incident, he added.
The mogul, who owns Cardiff City Football Club, said a business partner introduced him to SEAGM in 2007 and decided to invest through a private entity.
He had been a passive investor in SEAGM for the past 13 years, he said.
On Wednesday, the United States Department of Justice announced charges against five Chinese and two Malaysian nationals who carried out hacking operations around the world for at least six years, allegedly perpetrating identity and technology theft, planting ransomware and spying on Hong Kong activists.
The two executives were arrested in Perak on Monday, following an extradition request from US authorities on September 3, Malaysian police said in a press release Thursday.
“The Attorney General’s Office agreed to the request,” said IADC Commissioner Director Huzir Mohamed, adding that it was in line with Malaysian law and international treaties.
READ: APT41 – The China-based hacking operation that spans the world
Both Malaysian suspects are currently in pre-trial detention at Sungai Buloh Prison in Selangor and have appointed a lawyer.
SEAGAM, which is headquartered in Sitiawan, Perak, employs 172 staff members with offices in China, Thailand and Indonesia, serving 2.7 million registered users worldwide, according to Tan’s statement on Friday.
He added that neither SEAMGM nor its two executives possessed the knowledge or tools to hack.
The statement was issued following media reports linking him and his daughters to SEAGM.
SEAGM, in a statement posted to its website on Thursday, said it had never engaged in any illegal activity and would take “important steps” to handle such claims.
“All of our clients ‘personal data remains safe and secure,” he said, adding that he was hiring outside professionals to improve his system to protect his clients’ personal data.
