The man behind the Fusionex scandal returns
A year on, questions still surround the collapse of a tech darling.
Ivan Teh is back. Or did he ever leave?
Last year, the so-called tech entrepreneur was at the centre of a scandal. His company — data analytics firm Fusionex — had been acquired by Hitachi for over RM900 million.
But things soured quickly. Hitachi filed a winding-up petition riddled with allegations, and Teh, along with key executives, exited Fusionex.
Like several other business and tech reporters, I followed the story closely, reporting on developments. The first was for my alma mater Tech in Asia and the other here.
By April, the case had reached a low point as the court appointed interim liquidators.
I expected a follow-up suit, given Hitachi’s accusations against Teh. But nothing came across my radar. The noise died down, and I moved on.
Then, between December and February, I started receiving a wave of curious queries about Fusionex. Most of them came from investors or those claimed to represent financiers in Singapore and Hong Kong.
I entertained a few conversations as I, too, was equally curious. But I never got a straight answer as to why they were interested. The most anyone offered was a vague possibility of an acquisition or that they were interested in Teh’s whereabouts.
This was a story I ended up putting on the back burner, until this week when I heard Teh was back.
I am late to the party, of course: he had already been spotted at least twice with Digital Minister Gobind Singh Deo.
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