Last checked at 
(Adds police report, HSBC declined to comment)
By Roslan Khasawneh and Anshuman Daga
SINGAPORE, May 8 (Reuters) - HSBC Holdings PLC has
alleged that Singapore-based Zenrock Commodities Trading Pte Ltd
engaged in a series of "highly dishonest transactions" which
included using the same oil cargo to obtain loans from at least
two different lenders, according to a court document seen by
Reuters.
Zenrock did not respond to requests for comments.
HSBC filed a court application on Monday to place Zenrock
Commodities under judicial management, where a court appoints an
independent manager to run the affairs of a financially
distressed company in the place of existing management.
The case was scheduled to be heard in Singapore's High Court
on Friday, according to the Supreme Court's website.
Late last month, Zenrock issued a statement to reassure
clients that it was not under financial duress after global oil
and fuel prices slumped.
HSBC said in the court filing that Zenrock Commodities has
"behaved fraudulently, and engaged in double/multiple financing"
in two separate crude oil transactions that occurred in March
and April.
HSBC filed a police report on April 28 with Singapore's
Commercial Affairs Department "on such conduct", the court
document said.
Zenrock Commodities owed HSBC close to $49 million while its
total debt to institutional lenders stands at around $165
million, HSBC said.
HSBC declined to comment. Its law firm Shook Lin & Bok did
not respond to a request for comment.
When asked if the Singapore Police Force could confirm that
they have received a report from HSBC against Zenrock, a police
spokeswoman said in an email that it was "inappropriate" for
them to comment on this matter.
Zenrock is the latest Singapore-based commodities trading
firm whose finances have come under scrutiny as the collapse in
global oil prices amid a slump in consumption due to the
coronavirus pandemic ripples through the sector.
Zenrock trades crude, oil products and petrochemicals and
has offices in Singapore, Shanghai and Geneva.
The company's revenues more than doubled to $6.15 billion in
2018, from $2.88 billion in the previous year, according to its
latest annual financial statement on Singapore's Accounting and
Corporate Regulatory Authority website.
Its earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) also more than
doubled to $11.17 million in 2018, from $4.62 million in 2017.
(Reporting by Roslan Khasawneh and Anshuman Daga; Additional
reporting by Jessica Jaganathan; Writing by Florence Tan;
Editing by Michael Perry and Jane Merriman)
