HIN Leong Trading founder Lim Oon Kuin – the former Singapore oil tycoon better known as OK Lim – and his children, Evan Lim Chee Meng and Lim Huey Ching, have agreed to pay US$3.5 billion to the court-appointed liquidators of the company and top creditor HSBC.
In a hearing on Monday (Sep 30), the liquidators and HSBC secured consent to the US$3.5 billion judgment, one of Singapore’s largest, sought in a civil suit. The trial for the civil suit has been ongoing since August 2023.
HSBC’s lawyers told the court that the bank agreed to the offer by OK Lim and his family only this morning.
In consenting to the judgment, the Lims will have to pay back the sum of US$3.5 billion plus interest at the rate of 5.3 per cent per annum and costs.
The liquidators – Chan Kheng Tek and Goh Thien Phong – are represented by solicitors from Drew & Napier led by Cavinder Bull. OK Lim is represented by lawyers from Davinder Singh Chambers. Evan Lim is represented by lawyers from Damodara Ong, and Lim Huey Ching by lawyers from Advocatus Law.
“This is an important milestone in the liquidation of Hin Leong, and is a victory that belongs to the creditors of Hin Leong,” Goh told The Business Times.
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The Lims have offered to consent to the judgment without admitting liability, but the liquidators counsel did not agree to the wording. The liquidators had asked the Lims in question to be “personally responsible” for all the company’s debt during the civil trial.
The trial had lasted over 90 days, noted Justice Philip Jeyaratnam, who presided over the case. Both HSBC and the liquidators have called over 63 witnesses, with an additional 25 witnesses yet to give their oral testimony.
OK Lim was earlier convicted of three criminal charges in May, two for cheating HSBC and one for instigating a Hin Leong employee to forge a document for the purpose of cheating, totalling US$111.7 million. The mitigation and sentencing of OK Lim has been postponed from Oct 3 to Oct 15.
BT understands that OK Lim and his children had reached out to all the creditors on Sep 20, offering to accept the claims currently filed against them. The liquidators of Hin Leong were among the first to accept the offer, which had a short deadline of a few days for the creditors to accept.
The list of creditors include some 23 banks which are owed almost US$4 billion by OK Lim, as well as Sembcorp’s power generation subsidiary, Sembcorp Cogen.
In statements released by the Lims, all three will be applying for bankruptcy, as the assets frozen by the Mareva injunction is insufficient to pay off the US$3.5 billion plus interest and costs.
Sembcorp Cogen and Credit Agricole have agreed to the Lims’ offer to consent to judgment without liability for US$142.3 million, with the judgment in the process of being entered.
The Lims claimed that they did not want to take up any of the court’s time and resources in making the offer to consent to judgment without admitting liability. The family is now focused on a single civil suit against Rajah and Tann, with OK Lim also focused on his appeal against his criminal conviction.
The Lims said the other claimants have asked for time, and have been told to reply to the offer by this week.
