It was recently put forward by a source close to Pheim that the charges put by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) of alleged untrue trading against its Group founder and eminent fund manager, Tan Chong Koay, will not affect the group's operations in Malaysia.

The operations of Pheim Asset Management Sdn Bhd are in full compliance with the regulations and procedures of the Securities Commission.

The source said: "Investors need not worry about Pheim's operations here as their investment is in safe hands. The matter is being pursued in court and I am sure the company doesn't want anything to disrupt the fair proceedings there (Singapore)."

He added: "At this point, we only know what has been reported in the papers. As a responsible corporate citizen, Pheim will make an announcement when it has something concrete to announce on the matter."

It should be noted that Pheim Asset Management Sdn Bhd, Pheim Asset Management (Asia) Pte Ltd and Pheim Unit Trusts Bhd are included in the Pheim Group. Tan also happens to be chief executive of Pheim Asset Management (Asia) Pte Ltd that deals with US$1.26bil, mostly for big institutional clients like the Employees Provident Fund (EPF), the Government of Singapore Investment Corp and Norway's central bank.

No immediate comments could be obtained from the SIC and the EPF on the issue.

Tan is being sued by the MAS for an alleged false trading in Singapore-listed United Envirotech (UET) shares in late 2004. The suit brought by MAS, under its new civil penalty regime, has also named Phiem as defendant.