Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi, who was director from 2011 to 2012, said the CEO at the time, Nik Faisal Ariff Kamil, was tasked with handling the loan.

“We (directors) were briefed by Nik Faisal about the progress. When he mentioned that we (will) get the loan, subsequent events confirmed what he said,” he said.

“It was amazing how quickly (the loan was) negotiated and disbursed,” he said.

The court heard that KWAP loaned SRC International RM4 billion between 2011 and 2012.

The first RM2 billion was disbursed less than a month after the company applied for the loan and the remaining RM2 billion was granted to SRC International before the company even requested for it.

A large part of that loan, as much as RM3.6 billion, was transferred to a Swiss bank account and is currently frozen by the Swiss government.

SRC International is suing former prime minister Najib Razak and Nik Faisal for wrongfully receiving company property, and dishonestly and wrongfully conspiring to convert company property to their own use.

The suit originally included Shahrol and fellow former directors Ismee Ismail, Azhar Osman Khairuddin, Suboh Yasin and Che Abdullah @ Rashidi Che Omar as co-defendants.

SRC International later dropped the case against them. However, they were added as third parties by Najib.

Meanwhile, Shahrol also told the court that sometime in 2010, the directors found out that their request for RM3 billion from the government to set up the company was denied, adding that they only obtained a RM20 million grant.

He added that Nik Faisal reported the progress of SRC International’s meetings with the Economic Planning Unit (EPU) to the directors.

“We knew it (RM3 billion request) was rejected before EPU’s (formal notification) letter,” Shahrol said.

The hearing will continue before Justice Ahmad Fairuz Zainol Abidin on April 15 and 17.