FOREX RCI | Former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad had purportedly seemed indifferent when he was informed about the foreign exchange losses incurred by Bank Negara Malaysia.

Testifying before the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) investigating the losses which occurred between the 1980s and the early part of 1990s, Clifford Francis Herbert, who was a former deputy secretary-general with the finance ministry, said he came to know about the losses in late 1993 when he was instructed by then finance minister Anwar Ibrahim to check on the losses suffered by the central bank.

Armed with documents by Bank Negara, Herbert then did his own calculations and reported to Anwar through a note that the central bank had suffered losses amounting to about RM30 billion...