Once celebrated as one of Indonesia’s most promising technology unicorns, aquaculture start-up eFishery unravelled after investigators uncovered years of allegedly fabricated revenue, profits and operating data.
The scandal drew global attention because the company had attracted hundreds of millions of dollars from prominent institutional investors, including Malaysia’s Retirement Fund Incorporated (KWAP), Temasek and SoftBank.
Here is how the crisis unfolded.
Late 2018: Financial Figures Allegedly Falsified
The manipulation reportedly began in late 2018, when eFishery faced cash-flow pressures.
Founder and former chief executive Gibran Huzaifah later acknowledged inserting inaccurate figures into the company’s financial reports to present stronger performance and attract further funding.
He denied personally stealing investors’ money.
January 2022: eFishery Raises US$90 Million
Despite the alleged manipulation, investor confidence continued to grow.
In January 2022, eFishery secured US$90 million in a Series C funding round led by Temasek, SoftBank Vision Fund 2 and Sequoia Capital India.
The investment strengthened eFishery’s position as one of Southeast Asia’s leading aquaculture technology companies.
July 2023: Unicorn Valuation And KWAP Investment
eFishery raised about US$200 million in a Series D round in July 2023, pushing its valuation above US$1 billion and earning it unicorn status.
KWAP participated in the round, investing RM163.4 million for a 2.51% stake.
The investment was made alongside several major global investors, adding credibility to eFishery’s reported growth story.
February-April 2024: Police Complaints Emerge
Indonesian authorities later revealed that complaints concerning suspected falsification of eFishery’s financial statements had been lodged with police in early 2024.
However, the full extent of the alleged irregularities had yet to become public.
December 2024: Founders Suspended
The crisis escalated in December 2024 when eFishery’s board suspended Huzaifah and co-founder and chief product officer Chrisna Aditya.
The suspensions followed allegations of financial misconduct and the launch of an internal investigation.
Interim executives were appointed to oversee the business while the board examined its financial records.
January 2025: Investigation Exposes Huge Discrepancies
A preliminary investigation commissioned by the board reportedly uncovered major differences between eFishery’s stated and actual performance.
For the first nine months of 2024, eFishery was said to have reported revenue of about US$752 million. Investigators estimated its actual revenue was closer to US$157 million.
The company allegedly claimed a US$16 million profit despite recording an estimated US$35.4 million loss.
Its operating footprint may also have been overstated. While eFishery reportedly claimed more than 400,000 automated fish feeders were in use, investigators estimated the actual figure was around 24,000.
February 2025: Consultants Take Control
FTI Consulting was appointed to manage the company as shareholders considered restructuring, selling or liquidating the business.
eFishery subsequently began cutting more than 1,000 jobs, representing around 90% of its workforce.
Investors were reportedly warned that they might recover less than 10 cents for every dollar invested.
April 2025: Founder Admits Manipulation
In April 2025, Huzaifah publicly admitted that he had falsified eFishery’s financial accounts.
His admission provided the clearest explanation of how the company had maintained the appearance of rapid growth while its underlying finances deteriorated.
July 31, 2025: Former Executives Detained
Indonesian police detained Huzaifah and two former senior executives on July 31, 2025.
The authorities investigated allegations of fraud, embezzlement and misconduct linked to eFishery’s fundraising and investment activities.
April 29, 2026: Huzaifah Sentenced To Nine Years
On April 29, 2026, the Bandung District Court sentenced Huzaifah to nine years in prison after finding him guilty of embezzlement and money laundering.
Two other former eFishery executives were also convicted over their involvement in the scandal.
July 2026: KWAP Investment Faces Scrutiny
The fallout later reached Malaysia, where questions emerged over KWAP’s RM163.4 million investment.
The Malaysian government said KWAP had been deceived through a coordinated manipulation of eFishery’s financial statements despite conducting due diligence before investing.
KWAP said it had reviewed its investment and monitoring procedures and was pursuing available options to recover its funds.
July 17-21, 2026: MACC Opens Investigation
The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission established a team to examine KWAP’s investment process and losses linked to eFishery.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said the decisions made by the fund’s investment panel and board should be scrutinised, even though initial findings had not indicated corruption involving KWAP officials.
How Did The Scandal Happen?
At the centre of the scandal was the alleged manipulation of basic business indicators including revenue, profits, customer activity and the number of fish feeders deployed.
The inflated figures made eFishery appear larger, faster-growing and more profitable than it was, enabling the company to attract new funding at increasingly higher valuations.
The case also exposed weaknesses in investor oversight. Due diligence processes relied heavily on financial records, operational information and supporting documents that were allegedly manipulated over several years.
For investors, the eFishery collapse is a stark reminder that prominent backers, rapid growth and unicorn status do not eliminate governance risks.
The scandal was not simply the failure of an ambitious start-up. It was the collapse of a growth narrative that had allegedly been built on figures that did not reflect the real business.
However the bigger question is why wasn’t the issue raised during any of the parliament sitting by any of the member of parliaments on either side? This is quite baffling. Was there concerted effort to hide individuals behind this scandal? If not for Wong Chen this issue would not have surfaced and could have been swept under the carpet.
Well, MACC has started investigation and lets hope the culprits are brought to justice.
