KL minister says 1MDB has paid bond coupon due this quarter

Kuala Lumpur

1MALAYSIA Development Bhd has paid the interest on its bonds that were due this quarter after the debt's Abu Dhabi co-guarantor was compelled to service the coupons earlier in 2016, which had led to the deepening of a US$6.5 billion dispute.

The payments could be part of an approach by 1MDB's management to amicably settle a spat with International Petroleum Investment Co PJSC even as the two sides pursue arbitration talks, Malaysia's Second Finance Minister Johari Abdul Ghani said in an interview on Tuesday. The finance ministry oversees the state-owned investment company and is increasingly taking over its assets and projects as the government winds down the embattled fund.