Singapore Police: Samtrade FX Executives Charged Over Fraud and Money Laundering

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Three senior executives of the online trading platform Samtrade FX have been charged in Singapore for engaging in fraudulent practices and money laundering offenses, according to police.

Goh Nai De, Goh Li Xing, and Alfred Yue Jingyuan held key roles at the platform as CEO, CTO, and head of dealing and strategy, respectively. The men allegedly conspired to manipulate trades to create a misleading profile of profitable “copy trading” accounts.

Samtrade FX’s “copy trading” product automatically replicated trades from selected accounts into client portfolios. Police said that the majority of these copied trades were tied to 11 “Ultimate Trader” accounts controlled by Yue. Between January and December 2021, Yue allegedly altered bid-ask spreads in these accounts so that the resulting copy trades appeared lucrative to unsuspecting clients.

The three men received significant sums derived from client deposits linked to manipulated trades throughout the conspiracy, roughly S$8.7 million (US$6.7 million) for Goh Nai De, S$4.8 million (US$3.7 million) for Goh Li Xing, and S$650,000 (US$500,000) for Yue.

The men are charged with 11 counts each of engaging in fraudulent practices and money laundering offenses. Under Singapore’s Securities and Futures Act, individuals convicted of fraud offenses in Singapore can face up to seven years’ imprisonment, fines of up to S$250,000 (US$194,000) per charge, or both. Individuals convicted of money laundering offenses can face up to 10 years’ imprisonment, fines of up to S$500,000 (US$387,000) per charge, or both.