Winson Oil Trading, a Singapore-based oil trader, has launched a lawsuit against Standard Chartered Bank (Singapore) for US $30.4 million (SG $41.84m), alleging a breach of contract. In court documents, it is said that the sum is related to a claim filed by Winson Oil Trading after the first defendant failed to meet its contractual responsibilities, according to court filings.

A number of lawsuits have been filed against Hin Leong by his counterparties and banks with regard to payment issues stemming from oil trades with the Singapore-based trader, Winson Oil. As a result, the restructuring of billions of dollars' worth of debt has been placed under the judicial administration.

According to the publicly available court documents, Winson Oil sold an ultra-low sulfur diesel shipment to Hin Leong on April 2 and obtained a letter of credit (LC) from Standard Chartered, as per the usual financial framework in any oil transaction deal. Records also show that Winson Oil sent Standard Chartered a letter of credit through Credit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank. However, Standard Chartered Bank failed to make the payment, which was due in May, as per the requirement stated in the letter of credit.

It is learned that Winson Oil has also filed a lawsuit against Standard Chartered for monetary damages, interest, and other related expenditures. When contacted, Credit Agricole and Standard Chartered Bank of Singapore declined to comment on the matter. A request for further comment from Winson Oil was also turned down.

According to available information, Winson Oil had previously, in a separate statement, also announced that it was taking OCBC Bank to court to seek payment for a fuel transaction to Hin Leong that had been sponsored by the bank.

Since it was founded in 1998, the Winson Group has become one of Asia's top international energy trading firms. It is well known for its oil trading and bunkering operations in the region. To better serve its customers, the group has established offices and/or projects in Hong Kong, Singapore, and other Asian nations. This allows it to provide a broad range of services to a wider range of customers.

Members of the group have built strong and long-term relationships with the main refineries in Asia. There are many nations with which the group has strong economic ties: Singapore, Indonesia, the Philippines, South Korea, China, Vietnam, and Timor-Leste. The group has built three different business lines based on its strong market position and in-depth understanding of customer needs worldwide: oil trading, global maritime bunkering, and oil storage and terminals.

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