Investigative Reporter Who Exposed 1MDB to Speak at Anti-Fraud Conference

Famous for her work investigating and exposing the large and complex 1MDB scandal, Clare Rewcastle Brown believes that European banks should be considered partially culpable for the Malaysian-based fraud. Scheduled to address hundreds of anti-fraud professionals in London, 19-21 March, for the 2017 ACFE Fraud Conference Europe, Brown says that international bodies around the world could do more to investigate and prosecute fraud.

Famous for her work investigating and exposing the large and complex 1MDB scandal, Clare Rewcastle Brown believes that European banks should be considered partially culpable for the Malaysian-based fraud. Scheduled to address hundreds of anti-fraud professionals in London, 19-21 March, for the 2017 ACFE Fraud Conference Europe, Brown says that international bodies around the world could do more to investigate and prosecute fraud. 

“I am concerned there has been an insufficient response in the U.K., and also in France, to chasing up 1MDB,” she told the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE). “There is a mass of property that was funded by the stolen money through Khadem al Qubaisi in France and many UK players were up to their necks in the heist — law firms, offshore incorporations specialists, tax advisers, accountants … and that can only be a deliberate oversight, which I find very troubling.” 

Brown said she had alerted U.K. financial fraud law enforcers to the alleged money laundering and theft happening in the 1MDB fund in Malaysia, but she was told that they were too “over-burdened” to investigate. Despite her disappointment in the response she has seen, she remains optimistic that the general public is becoming more aware of the pervasiveness of fraud. “I get a lot of interest in my site and feedback,” she said. “People really seem to have woken up to the magnitude of the problem and the pernicious effects.” 

Brown will be joined at the conference by other keynote speakers including compliance expert Mark Livschitz and Training Director of the ACFE Liseli Pennings, CFE. Attendees will also hear from convicted fraudster Kweku Adoboli*, who lost more than $2 billion from UBS accounts through unauthorized trades. 

Educational sessions will include discussions about ethical corporate culture, cybercrime and using risk-based employee background checks.  

Contact the ACFE 
For more information, email PR@ACFE.com.