A 58-year-old Singaporean woman was charged guilty in court for operating an unlicensed payment service in Singapore. But she has insisted that she had unaware of the origins of the hundreds of millions of dollars that were transferred into her company's corporate bank account.

She is set to be sentenced on April 1.

Unlicensed Financial Transactions Worth Over US$531 Million

After incorporating a wholesale trading company named Unione, Zin Nwe Nyunt later went on to open three corporate bank accounts which were later used to transfer a total of US $531 million of illegal funds. She was rewarded with $170,000 for her service.

Similarly, Zin's associate, Nyan Win, a 60-year-old Singapore permanent resident, received more than $110,000 for his role in the scheme. He previously pleaded guilty to similar charges and will be sentenced on April 24.

The case caught the Singapore's authorities after it received a tipoff that an Australian investment scam victim had transferred US$1.8 million into bank accounts linked to companies in Singapore.

How the Scheme Operated

In 2019, a Myanmar national named Ko Phillip, who claimed to run a commodities trading business, approached Nyan Win for help in setting up a Singapore-based company to facilitate his operations.

Nyan was told that the corporate bank accounts would be established to receive and transfer funds on Phillip’s instructions. In exchange, Nyan Win was offered a commission of 0.5 Myanmar kyat per US$1 received.

Due to his uncertainty if he could open a bank account through the company where he was currency working as the director, Nyan Win turned to Zin Nwe Nyunt’s husband for help.

As her husband held a full-time job, he suggested that Zin Nwe Nyunt incorporate the company instead. After Zin has successfully established the company, she proceeded to open bank accounts with three different banks but handed over control, including online banking credentials, to Nyan Win.

Massive Money Transfers & victim's oversight

Between 2020 and 2021, Nyan Win coordinated with Ko Phillip to facilitate large-scale fund transfers through the company's bank accounts.

Between January and July 2020, Nyan Win used one of the company's bank accounts to receive over US$150 million before the money was transferred out.

Later under the instruction of Nyan, Zin opened a new corporate account. Between July 2020 and April 2021, this new account received more than $250 million before the money was transferred out.

Between August 2020 and March 2021, a third bank account was used to receive more than US$127 million, with over US$119 million subsequently moved out.

According to Deputy Public Prosecutor Ryan Lim, neither Unione, Zin Nwe Nyunt, or Nyan Win held a valid license from the Monetary Authority of Singapore and were not an exempt payment service providers.

The prosecutor also added that despite handling such vast sums, neither Zin Nwe Nyunt nor Nyan Win told the effort to verified the source of funds or question the legitimacy of Ko Phillip’s business claims.