SINGAPORE – A woman who incorporated a wholesale trading firm before its bank accounts received more than US$500 million (S$640.7 million), including scam proceeds, was sentenced to one year and six months’ jail on July 14.

Singaporean Zin Nwe Nyunt, 58, had admitted that she did not know where the money came from.

In earlier proceedings, the court heard that in August 2021, police received information that an Australian investment scam victim had transferred US$1.8 million to several bank accounts maintained by companies in Singapore.

Three of the companies later transferred more than $480,000 to a bank account belonging to a firm called Unione, which Zin Nwe Nyunt had incorporated.

In March, she pleaded guilty

to two counts of working together with a male Myanmar national, who was her husband’s childhood friend, to carry out a business of providing a payment service in Singapore without a licence.

She had earned “commissions” totalling more than $170,000, while Nyan Win, the man she worked with, received over $110,000.

The latter, who is a 61-year-old Singapore permanent resident, had earlier pleaded guilty to similar charges and is expected to be sentenced on July 30.

It all started in 2019 when a Myanmar national known as Ko Phillip, who purportedly operated a commodities trading business, told Nyan Win that he was looking for someone to incorporate a company in Singapore to assist him in his business.

The company in Singapore would then open corporate bank accounts, which would be used to receive and transfer funds on Ko Phillip’s instructions.

Under this arrangement, he offered Nyan Win a commission of 0.5 Myanmar kyat (0.03 Singapore cent) for every US$1 received.

Nyan Win was interested in this opportunity. However, he was uncertain whether he could set up a corporate bank account through Piyar International, a company that dealt with motor vehicles, where he was a director.

Without revealing details, Deputy Public Prosecutor Ryan Lim told the court in March this was because banks had previously closed Piyar’s corporate bank accounts.

Nyan Win then approached Zin Nwe Nyunt’s husband and told him about this potential business opportunity with Ko Phillip.

As the husband was holding a full-time job, he suggested that Zin Nwe Nyunt assist in the new firm’s incorporation instead.

It was later agreed between Zin Nwe Nyunt and Nyan Win that the corporate bank accounts would be controlled by Nyan Win. Commissions would then be split between the pair.

Zin Nwe Nyunt incorporated Unione and, at different times, opened one corporate account each with three banks. She then handed over information, including the internet banking details, to Nyan Win.

DPP Lim had said that from 2020 to 2021, Nyan Win liaised with Ko Phillip to make arrangements for money to be received into Unione’s corporate bank accounts.

Zin Nwe Nyunt and Nyan Win did not know where the funds came from.

However, the pair also did not perform any checks to ascertain the nature of the funds received or the legitimacy of Ko Phillip’s claims that he was operating a “commodities business”.

Between January and July 2020, Nyan Win used one of Unione’s bank accounts to receive more than US$150 million before the money was transferred out.

On July 21, 2020, the bank closed the account due to many suspicious transactions.

Following the closure of this account, Zin Nwe Nyunt took instructions from Nyan Win and opened a corporate account with another bank.

Between July 2020 and April 2021, Nyan Win used this new account to receive more than US$250 million before the money was transferred out.

DPP Lim said that between Aug 18, 2020, and March 24, 2021, a third bank account was used to receive more than US$127 million and over US$119 million was transferred out.

On July 14, Zin Nwe Nyunt’s bail was set at $20,000. She is expected to begin serving her sentence on Aug 15.