ABN Amro Bank Singapore is being sued by a Bangladeshi businessman for allegedly misrepresenting the safety of his investments, which subsequently led to losses.
Anis Ahmed, the owner of Langeford Capital, said in court filings that he had lost $1m after ABN Amro told him one of his investments was safe without disclosing that it was linked to the now-defunct Lehman Brothers Holdings. Ahmed said the bank knew of his low risk appetite and aversion to US-related investments and is claiming the full investment back from the Dutch bank, plus interest on the sum and legal costs.
In February 2008, Ahmed, via Langeford Capital, invested $1m in HKG vs US Property Outperformance Auto-Callable Note from ABN Amro. According to the writ, Ahmed was told by ABN Amro relationship manager Chwan Lim that the product could give a 30% return after its one-year term and that there was 'hardly any downside'.
The product was based on the relative performances of the Philadelphia Housing Index against the share prices of two Hong Kong companies.
In its defence, ABN Amro said Ahmed and his business were classified as a 'high net worth, experienced and sophisticated investor with a reasonable appetite for risk'. Ahmed allegedly relied on his own judgement and had seen the product term sheet bearing Lehman's name as product issuer.
The case is Langeford Capital Ltd vs ABN Amro Bank NV S173/2010 in the Singapore High Court.