Aperia Group Nvidia chips fraud case

The Aperia Group Nvidia chips fraud case is an ongoing criminal case in Singapore involving alleged fraud and money laundering connected to the purchase of computer servers believed to contain high-end Nvidia chips. Four individuals, including Aperia Group chief executive officer Alan Wei Zhaolun, and four companies face charges. The case drew international attention after United States officials investigated whether Chinese artificial intelligence company DeepSeek had used intermediaries in Singapore to obtain Nvidia chips in circumvention of US export controls.

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Alan Wei Zhaolun seen walking into court. Photo by The Straits Times (Kelvin Chng).

As part of the investigation, the Singapore Police Force issued a prohibition of disposal order against a Good Class Bungalow at 12 Chee Hoon Avenue valued at about S$55 million, which Wei is alleged to have purchased partly with criminal proceeds. Police have also seized about S$1 million in bank accounts under investigation.

Wei has pleaded not guilty to all 11 charges against him, and the Aperia Group has publicly denied the allegations.

Background

The Aperia Group refers collectively to three Singapore-incorporated companies: Aperia International Pte Ltd, A-Speed Infotech Pte Ltd and Aperia Cloud Services (II) Pte Ltd. At the time of the alleged offences, Alan Wei Zhaolun, 50, was the group's chief executive officer, Jenny Lim, 51, was its chief financial officer, and Aaron Woon Guo Jie, 41, was its head of sales. Wei, described by Bloomberg as a China-born businessman, and Woon were reported by MS News to be Singaporeans, as was Lim.

A fourth accused, Li Ming, 51, a Chinese national, was established through police investigations to be the controller of a separate company, Luxuriate Your Life Pte Ltd. He allegedly made fraudulent representations to Super Micro on two occasions in late 2023, including once claiming to be an employee of the firm, and allegedly stating that Luxuriate Your Life would retain the servers it bought and lease them to other companies.

The first charges followed a joint operation by the Singapore Police Force and Singapore Customs in February 2025, during which raids were conducted across 22 locations, nine people were arrested, and documentary and electronic records were seized.

The wider context of the case involves US export controls on advanced semiconductors. The United States has banned the export of high-end Nvidia chips to China over concerns that they could be used for military purposes. In January 2025, Bloomberg reported that US government officials were examining whether DeepSeek, the Chinese AI company, had used intermediaries in Singapore to purchase Nvidia chips.

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Jenny Lim, CFO of Aperia Group Cloud Services. Photo by The Straits Times (Kelvin Chng).

Singapore's Ministry of Trade and Industry said in February 2025 that Nvidia had stated there was "no reason to believe that DeepSeek obtained any export-controlled products from Singapore". Singapore authorities have not alleged that the accused breached US export controls, which are not Singapore law; the local charges concern alleged false representations made to suppliers and related money laundering offences.

The allegations

Alleged fraud against server suppliers

The fraud charges, brought under Section 424B read with Section 109 of the Penal Code 1871, state that Wei, Lim and Woon engaged in a conspiracy to commit fraud in respect of the purchase of servers from three suppliers: Dell, Super Micro Computer and Asus. Between November 2023 and February 2025, they allegedly made false representations to these suppliers that one of the Aperia Group companies would be the end-user of the servers.

According to a March 2025 CNA report, the servers supplied by Dell and Supermicro to the Singapore-based companies may have contained Nvidia chips, and were subsequently sent to Malaysia. At the time, Minister for Home Affairs K Shanmugam said: "The question is whether Malaysia was a final destination or from Malaysia, it went to somewhere else, which we do not know for certain at this point."

Li is separately alleged to have falsely represented to Super Micro that his company, Luxuriate Your Life, would hold the servers purchased and lease them to other companies.

Alleged money laundering

Money laundering charges have been brought under the Corruption, Drug Trafficking and Other Serious Crimes (Confiscation of Benefits) Act 1992.

Wei is alleged to have acquired about S$5.8 million in his personal bank accounts, said to partly represent benefits from criminal conduct amounting to about S$3.2 million. He is further alleged to have converted property worth about S$55 million, partly representing criminal benefits of about S$38 million, for the purchase of the Good Class Bungalow at 12 Chee Hoon Avenue between July and October 2024.

Lim and Woon each face one money laundering charge for allegedly acquiring about S$1.2 million in their personal bank accounts, said to partly represent criminal benefits of about S$1 million each.

Charges against the companies

Photo by Bloomberg.

On 6 July 2026, the three Aperia Group companies and Luxuriate Your Life were themselves handed fraud charges. Police stated this was the first instance of corporate entities being prosecuted in relation to these investigations.

Timeline of events

Date	Event
November 2023 to February 2025	Period of the alleged false representations to Dell, Super Micro Computer and Asus.
July to October 2024	Wei allegedly purchases the Good Class Bungalow at 12 Chee Hoon Avenue for S$55 million.
January 2025	Bloomberg reports US officials are probing whether DeepSeek used Singapore intermediaries to obtain Nvidia chips.
February 2025	Joint SPF-Singapore Customs operation raids 22 locations; nine people are arrested and documentary and electronic records are seized.
27 February 2025	Wei, Woon and Li are charged with fraud by false representation over server purchases.
March 2025	2025Shanmugam says investigations revealed the servers may contain Nvidia chips, embedded in servers supplied by Dell and Supermicro before being sent to Malaysia.
2 April 2026	Jenny Lim is charged in relation to the investigation.
1 July 2026	Lim and Woon receive additional fraud and money laundering charges; Li receives additional charges including fraudulent trading under the Insolvency, Restructuring and Dissolution Act 2018. Police issue a prohibition of disposal order against the S$55 million GCB and announce the seizure of about S$1 million in bank accounts.
6 July 2026	Wei is handed additional charges, bringing his total to 11, and pleads not guilty to all of them. Bail is raised from S$800,000 to S$1.25 million. The four companies are charged, marking the first corporate prosecutions in the case.

Court proceedings

At the 6 July 2026 hearing, Wei pleaded not guilty to all 11 charges. His lawyers from WongPartnership told the court that he denies any wrongdoing and that the charges are "misconceived", adding that Wei and the three Aperia Group companies had been cooperative with authorities.

Reports on Wei's bail status differ. Mothership and The Independent Singapore reported that bail was set at S$1.25 million and that Wei was released on bail. Bloomberg, however, reported that the court's case management system showed his bail had been revoked after prosecutors raised the amount by S$450,000 to more than S$1.2 million, and that he was being held in custody. Editors should verify his current status against the next court mention before publication.

Bloomberg also reported that prosecutors have not accused Nvidia, Dell, Super Micro or Asustek of any wrongdoing, with the case focused on the individual accused persons and the companies they controlled.

In a media release dated 6 July 2026, A-Speed Infotech and the Aperia Group of Companies stated: "It is unfortunate that despite their best efforts, the companies face these allegations of wrongdoing, which they deny." An Aperia Group spokesperson also said the allegations involve commercial transactions across several countries requiring compliance with different regulatory rules, and that the company would continue operating while cooperating with the authorities.

The cases involving Wei, the other executives and the companies have been adjourned for further pre-trial conferences.

Potential penalties

A person convicted of engaging in a conspiracy to commit fraud through false representation can face up to 20 years' jail and a fine. A person convicted of converting benefits from criminal conduct faces up to 10 years' jail, a fine of up to S$500,000, or both. If convicted, the companies can be fined for each charge.

$55M Good Class Bungalow asset seized

Alan Wei Zhaolun's $55M Good Class Bungalow. Photo by Google Maps.

The Good Class Bungalow subject to the prohibition of disposal order sits on a freehold 15,486 sq ft plot along Chee Hoon Avenue in District 11, off Adam Road, with a 38-metre frontage, and had previously been put up for sale in 2024. CNA and The Straits Times reported that the property is owned by Wei. While the order is in force, the bungalow cannot be sold or transferred. Together with the roughly S$1 million seized from bank accounts, police said more than S$56 million in assets have been seized or prohibited from disposal.

According to Uchify, the six-bedroom bungalow was purpose-built for sale by developer Yang Tse Pin, who acquired the original 1998 house for S$21.3 million in 2021 and invested a further S$12 million in its design and construction. Designed by Gary Lim of Tellus Architects, the house has a built-up area of about 26,000 sq ft across two storeys, an attic and a basement. Under Singapore's anti-money laundering laws, property found to have been bought with criminal proceeds can be confiscated by the state if the accused is convicted.