Singapore police have seized a luxury bungalow worth S$55 million (approximately US$42.4 million) and frozen about S$1 million in bank accounts as part of an investigation into a major fraud case involving the illegal transshipment of NVIDIA artificial intelligence chips.

The seized property, located at 12 Chee Hoon Avenue in an upscale residential enclave near the Singapore Botanic Gardens, falls under the Good Class Bungalow category. A prohibition of disposal order has been issued against the property, preventing any sale or transfer while investigations are ongoing. According to police, at least two-thirds of the purchase price—about S$38 million—was derived from criminal proceeds linked to the smuggling of NVIDIA chips.

The central figure in the case is Alan Wei Zhaolun, chief executive officer of technology firm Aperia Group. Since February 2025, Wei and three other individuals, along with four Singapore-registered companies, have been charged in court. The other accused include Aaron Woon Guo Jie, sales director of Aperia Group; Jenny Lim, chief financial officer; and Li Ming, a Chinese national. The four companies involved are Aperia International, A-Speed Infotech, Aperia Cloud Services, and Luxuriate Your Life.

Investigations reveal that between November 2023 and February 2025, Wei and his associates allegedly made false representations to three major server suppliers—Dell, Super Micro Computer, and Asus—by claiming that Aperia Group’s companies were the end-users of the servers. This allowed them to procure high-end servers containing advanced NVIDIA AI chips, which were subsequently transshipped to Malaysia and other destinations. The final whereabouts of the chips remain unknown.

NVIDIA’s high-end AI chips have been subject to U.S. export controls since 2022, with Washington concerned that the technology could be used for Chinese military applications. The U.S. Department of Justice had previously identified Singapore as a transit hub for smuggling NVIDIA chips into China.

Under Singapore law, if convicted of fraud, each of the four accused faces a maximum penalty of up to 20 years’ imprisonment and a fine. If convicted of money laundering, they face up to 10 years’ imprisonment and a fine of up to S$500,000. The companies involved are also liable for fines if found guilty.

The Singapore Police Force stated that it adopts a “zero-tolerance” stance towards such criminal activities and is committed to safeguarding Singapore’s reputation as a trusted global business hub. The case is currently before the courts, and the charges have yet to be proven in court.

July 4 — The personal data of approximately 70,000 individuals in Singapore has been exposed in a cybersecurity incident involving an IBM-managed cloud environment, the Singapore Land Authority (SLA) announced on Friday.

The SLA said preliminary investigations revealed unauthorised access to a data set created solely for vendor development and testing within a cloud environment managed by IBM for the Singapore Titles Automated Registration System (STARS) and the eLodgment System (ELS). IBM serves as the appointed vendor to support and maintain these systems for the SLA.

According to the authority, the data set was originally created in 1998 and updated periodically over subsequent years. It was intended to contain only mock and anonymised testing data based on property ownership and lodgment records. However, the SLA has since uncovered that the data set also contained the names, National Registration Identity Card (NRIC) numbers, and property addresses of an estimated 70,000 individuals. “This information should have been anonymised but was not. Investigations are ongoing to determine how this occurred,” the SLA stated.

The SLA stressed that the affected testing environment managed by IBM is distinct and separate from the authority’s operational systems. “There is no connection or compromise to the live systems used for operations of STARS, ELS or any other SLA systems,” the authority said. Property ownership and lodgment records in the operational systems remain secure and unaffected.

IBM has revoked access associated with the affected development and testing environment to prevent any further unauthorised access. As a precautionary measure, the SLA has identified the individuals whose information was contained in the affected data set and has begun notifying them, while advising them on how to seek further information and assistance.

The SLA is working closely with IBM, the Government Technology Agency of Singapore, and the Cyber Security Agency of Singapore to investigate the incident, establish the full facts, and ensure that necessary remedial measures are taken. A police report has been filed and the Personal Data Protection Commission has been notified.

The authority has also advised members of the public to remain vigilant against phishing emails, phishing websites, text messages, or telephone calls from parties claiming to represent government agencies or other organisations while investigations are ongoing. The SLA apologised for the concern and inconvenience this incident may cause.