Issue #34 : Throne of Lies
Welcome to the 34th edition of Overheard in Asia (and final one for 2023)!
Here are the 🌶 headlines:
China: Chinese courts hear lawsuits against Malaysia Airlines over missing MH 370
China: Chinese lithium maker considers lodging arbitration against Mexico
Singapore: Greek investor sues Singapore fintech firm, Snap Innovations, over alleged contractual breach
Ling Yah
P/S: Know of any interesting seminars happening? Drop us a note at editor@overheard.asia!
Oil Supplies
Ah, the Ukraine war.
Its impact is starting to materialise in the form of arbitration suits!
🍿 What Happened?
In 2012, India’s largest gas utility, GAIL, and Gazprom Marketing and Singapore (“GMTS”) entered into a SPA for 2.5 mtpa of LNG for a term of 2018 - 2041.
At the time of signing, GMTS was a unit of Gazprom Germania - now known as SEFE.
In April 2022, GMTS was moved to Gazprom Germania when its Russian parent Gazprom gave up ownership of SEFE due to sanctions imposed as a result of the Ukraine war.
Subsequently, SEFE stopped supply LNG to GAIL in June 2022 to meet its own demand, claiming that it was necessary to protect its energy security. Supplies resumed in April 2023.
🚨 Now
On 30 Nov, GAIL launched a a USD 1.81 billion arbitration process against Gazprom over the undelivered LNG volumes in the London Court of International Arbitration.
Stay tuned.
Fraud
As bitcoin prices start to rise, Terraform Labs & its founder, Do Kwon, are back in the spotlight.
🍿 What Happened?
On September 2022, Julian Moreno Beltran and Douglas Gan (on behalf of 375 other claimants), filed a class-action suit against Terraform and Do Kwon in Singapore, alleging that Terraform’s promotion of terraUSD had misled users, leading to a combined loss of $57 million for its users.
terraUSD (UST) was Terraform Labs’ algorithmic stablecoin whose value plummeted when it lost its peg to the US dollar in May 2022, sinking to less than $0.10.
👀 Now
Terraform attempted to shift the case to arbitration, invoking the website’s terms of users which required users to forgo their right to a trial and the ability to join a class-action suit.
However, Singapore’s High Court rejected this argument and allowed the class-action lawsuit to proceed.
This is a significant decision and according to the claimants’ law firm, represents the furthest that a class-action suit has progressed in this world.
That said…
Terraform Labs’ troubles aren’t confined to just Singapore.
It is also facing fraud charges brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission in the US, alleging the sale of unregistered securities.
Throne of Lies
Singapore's Law and Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam has launched a civil lawsuit against TikTok.
🍿 What Happened?
On 13 Aug, a TikTok user (@trusted.seller) allegedly uploaded a video with images and the following caption: "GIVE HIM A DEFAMATION SUIT SISTER #MINISTER #SG #VIRAL #EXWIFE”, including a screenshot of a forum post with allegations against K Shanmugam.
On 14 Aug, another TikTok user purportedly uploaded a video with an image of a Facebook post that included false and defamatory statements against him. Another TikTok user did the same on 17 Aug.
K Shanmugam commenced separate proceedings against celebcriticis.com over the published article and on 15 Sept, the State Courts declared that the article contained false statements and issued a stop-publication order against the website.
👀 TikTok
K Shanmugan asked TikTok to take immediate action to disable access to the videos and also provide basic subscriber information for the three users.
TikTok responded stating that it was unable to disclose such information in the absence of a court order.
Without the identity or address of the three TikTok users, K Shanmugan is unable to commence legal proceedings against them, which is what led to his current lawsuit against TikTok.
TL;DR
Don't spread false information!
Food Feature
If you're ever in Kuching, Sarawak (Malaysia), pop by Peter's Special.
It's a favourite amongst locals especially for its East-meets-West takes on classic dishes like oxtail (pictured above) and other dishes you can find only in Sarawak, e.g. midin (a type of wild vegetable).
Other recommended dishes: Fried tofu, crispy pork knuckle and pork chop!
Details: Facebook, Google Maps
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David Grief was described as "the Law's Middleman" (Business Times, 2021). You can reach out to him at dg@davidgrief.com if you need help identifying the right lawyer, arbitrator or expert for your matters, or even if you just want to grab a drink 🍵🍺 with someone who has managed and mentored lawyers for almost 5️⃣0️⃣ years!