Vinod Sekhar (born 6 August 1968) is a Malaysian businessman who is the chairman and chief executive of the PETRA Group,[1] whose businesses include restaurants, recycling rubber, media and entertainment, agriculture and modular building materials.[2]
Sekhar has been sued by 12 investors and former employees, for alleged fraud, misrepresentation, breach of contract, and acknowledgement of debt.[3] Further, in 2021, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission opened a money laundering and tax evasion investigation into Sekhar's affairs.[4]
He was named by Forbes magazine as Malaysia's 28th richest man in 2009.[5]
In 1990, Sekhar formed Sekhar Tunku Imran (STI) Group together with his friend, Tunku Tan Sri Imran and entered various business ventures. One of the most notable business deals that STI had was a joint venture with Disney-MGM Studios in Florida, USA to produce the movie entitled 'Tarzan, The Epic Adventure'.[8] Tunku Tan Sri Imran was declared bankrupt in 2005.[9]
The Petra Group is a privately held company known for Green Rubber Global, the company's key business which it claims has a cost-effective process that can efficiently recycle used rubber. A 2008 lawsuit against Sekhar and Green Rubber Global alleged fraud.[10] In 2019, it was reported that an Irish national, John Slattery sued Sekhar to claim the US$108,000 which Slattery had paid in 2017 as an investment into Green Rubber Sdn Bhd.[11]
In 2021, Petra Group claimed to have procured 400 million Sinovac vaccines from China for free distribution. Malaysian government dismissed the claim and found no evidence for its basis.[12]
In September 2020, Sekhar launched The Vibes, an online news publication covering Malaysian news.[13] The news publication was spearheaded by Terence Fernandez, former managing editor of Malay Mail, alongside many former journalists from major publications. However, they have subsequently left the portal.[14]
Philanthropy
Sekhar is the founder of the Vinod Sekhar Foundation, which was founded to undertake various initiatives to alleviate poverty, provide healthcare and education, and support the most vulnerable communities including the indigenous, disabled, old folks, children, refugees, and poor.[15] However the Foundation has no website so the claims are impossible to verify. Sekhar has a history of unfulfilled philanthropic commitments, including a £2.5 million towards the British charity 'Hopes and Homes for Children' in 2008 and an £8 million pledge to Saint Andrews Medical School in 2010 neither of which materialised. He also pledged to donate 200,000 COVID vaccines in 2021 which never arrived.[16][17][18]
Sekhar allegedly purchased a $17.5 million yacht with proceeds from the sale of ventilators during the COVID pandemic.[19][20]
Personal life
Sekhar is the youngest son of Sukumari Nair and B.C. Sekhar, also known as Mr. Natural Rubber, who, for a time, provided significant inputs in the global natural rubber industry. He has three siblings. He is married to Winy Sekhar with whom he has two daughters, Petra and Tara.[21][22]
His wife, Winy Yeap Liew Heoh, is the great-granddaughter of the banker Yeap Chor Ee, and is also cited as a co-defendant in the ongoing 2024 lawsuit for alleged fraud.[3]
Sekhar said in a 2021 interview that he was a "close friend" of the Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.[23]
Lawsuit
In 2024, a group of 12 investors and former employees sued Datuk Vinod Sekhar, for alleged fraud, misrepresentation, breach of contract and an acknowledgement of debt.[3][24]
^"Malaysia in the Asian Century: The Challenges we all face", in: Frank-Jürgen Richter and Thang D. Nguyen: The Malaysian Journey, Marshall Cavendish 2004.
