$1.45b nickel scam: Venture capitalist says he was impressed when he first met alleged scammer

Well-known venture capitalist Finian Tan told the High Court on April 3 that he was impressed by alleged fraudster Ng Yu Zhi, who was introduced to him as a successful nickel trader when they first met in August 2020.

Dr Tan said: “I was so amazed that such a young person could have amassed so much net worth.

“He was a self-made man apparently, and he was so young. He appeared knowledgeable and smart... He understood what I was doing, asked very good questions, (and) didn’t inherit his wealth.” 

Dr Tan, the founder and chairman of Vickers Venture Partners, is known for spotting the potential in search giant Baidu back in 2000 when it was just a small Chinese start-up.

He was taking the stand in the ongoing trial of Ng, 37, who is accused of masterminding a nickel-trading scam that attracted $1.45 billion from hundreds of investors over six years.

Ng is accused of cheating Dr Tan by getting him to deliver US$19.2 million (S$25.7 million) in fresh funds to Ng’s company, Envy Global Trading (EGT).

Ng allegedly did this by making Dr Tan believe that the company was buying nickel at a discount and selling the metal for a profit.

Taking the stand on the afternoon of April 3, Dr Tan noted that Ng never approached him about the nickel business.

He said a good friend had told him about someone who was keen to invest in Vickers or one of its funds.

Dr Tan, who holds a PhD in engineering, said he agreed to meet this person.

The meeting, held on Dr Tan’s boat in Sentosa, was attended by Ng and Ms Veronica Shim.

Ms Shim, a former Singapore Airlines flight attendant-turned-private banker, was then chief executive of fund manager Envysion Wealth Management.

Dr Tan said Ms Shim, who arrived earlier, told him that Ng was a “very, very successful nickel trader”.

He added that he believed Ng must be successful because he intended to put millions into investments with a long horizon.

After this meeting, Ng agreed to commit a US$5 million investment in one of the funds.

Subsequently, Ng expressed interest in investing US$24 million in one of the companies in the Vickers group but had three conditions.

Ng wanted to bring others in on the investment, wanted the investment to be paid in two tranches, and wanted Dr Tan to be on Envysion’s board of advisers.

After meeting the six others, who include Envy co-founder Rhiya Lee and sales director Lau Lee Sheng, Dr Tan agreed to the conditions.

Out of the US$24 million invested, Ng contributed US$13 million.

Dr Tan said he agreed to be Envysion’s adviser because the time commitment was small, and he was happy to advise young companies on venture capitalism.

After agreeing to be an adviser to Envysion, he met Ms Shim at Centennial Tower, where EGT’s office is located.

It was then that he found out Envysion’s “bread and butter” was investing in Ng’s nickel business.

He said: “I was quite surprised because nickel trading is volatile. How do you raise a fund that invests in nickel trading?”

He said when he asked Ms Shim how Ng could make so much money, she told him to speak to Ng.

“This was the first time after the first two business deals that I found out what Youzhi did,” he said, referring to Ng by his name in Mandarin.

Dr Tan, who used to be an oil trader, said he had never made such consistent money in trading and wanted to know how Ng did it.

Ng told Dr Tan that at his former job at an accounting firm, one of his clients was a nickel miner.

At the time, the demand for nickel was low, but there was a surplus of the metal.

Ng said he bought nickel at a discount and sold it for a profit.

Over time, the supplier had enough confidence in him to grant him a term contract.

Subsequently, the demand for nickel surged, and it became a seller’s market.

Dr Tan said he related this to his own experience trading in the Middle East, and the rate of returns sounded very realistic to him.

When Dr Tan returned home, he checked the nickel prices for the past years, and they were consistent with Ng’s narrative.

He later asked Ng in a text message if he could invest in his nickel business.

Dr Tan’s testimony continues on April 4.

Ng faces 108 charges over offences including cheating, forgery, criminal breach of trust, money laundering and fraudulent trading.

The prosecution is proceeding on 42 of these charges in the current trial, which began in November 2024.

Source: The Straits Times © SPH Media Limited. Permission required for reproduction.

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