KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 31): Four Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) officials have been told to go on leave pending investigations into the January purchase of land valued at RM2 billion.

The StarOnline this morning reported that the four were put on leave as the authorities including the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission investigate further into how the sale was concluded, without citing the source of the information.

It added that in June this year, former Bank Negara Malaysia Governor Tan Sri Muhammad Ibrahim resigned from his post over the controversy.

The report said the controversy over the sale of land came about because the proceeds were alleged to have been used to settle some of the liabilities of debt-laden 1Malaysia Development Bhd.

The issues were the pricing and speed in which the transaction was completed. The RM2 billion price tag is what the land would have cost if the purchase was for commercial reasons, it said.

However, in BNM's case the purchase was not for commercial reasons hence the contention was the price should have been lower.

Also, the money was transferred to the federal government before the full transaction was completed.

theedgemarkets.com has contacted a BNM spokesperson and is awaiting an official response from the central bank on the matter.

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