StanChart Takes Provision for Suspected Qingdao Fraud
Standard Chartered Plc said its $175 million provision to cover its exposure to suspected commodities fraud in China was the result of a conservative view of possible costs but didn't believe there were widespread problems in the sector. Chinese authorities launched an investigation in May into whether metals trading firm Decheng Mining and related companies used fake warehouse receipts at Qingdao Port to obtain multiple loans secured against a single cargo of metal. "We believe that in the provisioning we have taken we have taken a very conservative approach. Our exposure in the warehouses around Qingdao is around $250 million in total," StanChart Chief Executive Peter Sands told reporters on a call on Wednesday after the London-based bank announced first-half results.
Citigroup Seeks British Court Backing on China Metals Claims
Citigroup Inc said on Friday it has started proceedings in commercial court in London to enforce its rights over $285 million of financing at two ports in China, where metals are believed to have gone missing. Citigroup said it initiated the action on July 22 after a business counterparty and a Chinese warehouse provider commenced action in British courts to establish their rights. Citigroup's disclosure, made in a quarterly financial filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, did not name the counterparty or the warehouse operator. Standard Chartered, China's CITIC Resources Holdings Ltd, Shanxi Coal International Energy Group and other firms have also made legal claims over metals financing since May.
CITIC Starts Court Proceedings Against Qingdao Port Operator
China's CITIC Resources Holdings Ltd has begun court proceedings against the operator of a bonded warehouse at Quindao port as legal action ramps up following an investigation into metals financing fraud at the world's seventh busiest port. CITIC Resources said last month it had been unable to secure around 120,000 tonnes of alumina, more than half of the alumina stocks it had title to that were stored at the port pending payment by buyers and delivery. Under the legal action, CITIC is requiring the port operator to confirm its ownership of 223,270 tonnes of alumina and 7,486 tonnes of copper, and to release the metal to the group or to offer compensation, it said in a filing to the Hong Kong stock exchange on Tuesday.
