Malaysian authorities have filed charges against 17 current and former directors in relation to the 1MBD scandal, including the head of private wealth management for Asia Pacific and some of its most senior bankers in London.

A Goldman Sachs spokesperson said the charges – along with those announced in December – were “misdirected and will be vigorously defended”.

Among the defendants named by Malaysian attorney general Tommy Thomas were Ronald Suk Bae Lee, who heads private wealth management Asia Pacific, Richard Gnodde, the chief executive of Goldman Sachs International (GSI) in London, and GSI’s former co-c...