Trafigura charged in China

Trafigura’s Singapore subsidiary has been charged with executing fake petrol deals in China, international media reported on Thursday.

The investigation started in 2014 after Qingdao United Energy, a Chinese trading firm, complained it had lost USD 32 million from rogue financing agreements, Reuters reported.

Tian Meng, a Trafigura marketer based in Beijing, was also charged with bank fraud, alongside Zhang Wei, a trader associated with Qingdao United Energy.

Trafigura was the counterparty to the alleged fraudulent deals, an indictment cited by Reuters claimed.

“After Tian got approval for the deal from Trafigura, Zhang Wei signed a contract with Trafigura in the name of Qingdao United Energy and fabricated the fact that it was purchasing gasoline from Trafigura,” the document, prepared by prosecutors in the city of Langfang in Hebei province, said.

Trafigura refused to comment for the report, though Reuters noted that senior company officials have in the past maintained that at the heart of the scandal lies a commercial dispute rather than a criminal act.

USD 32.9 million belonging to Trafigura has been frozen by the Chinese authorities in relation to the probe, the report added.