US authorities are also probing into Goldman’s hiring practices in relation to 1MDB, following the hiring of the daughter of an aide to Prime Minister Najib Razak by Goldman.

However, the WSJ said, the investigations were in the early stages and no one, including 1MDB, has been accused of wrongdoing.

Prime Minister Najib Razak and 1MDB have denied any wrongdoing. Najib has, in fact, been cleared by the Attorney-General following a probe by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission.

The WSJ said US investigators had subpoenaed Goldman’s former top banker in Southeast Asia, Tim Leissner, and that he was cooperating with the authorities.

Quoting unnamed “people who are familiar” with the matter, the WSJ said Leissner, who left the firm last month after being suspended for allegedly violating Goldman’s policies, has been told that he is not the subject of the investigation at this stage.

WSJ said Goldman profited handsomely from its dealings with 1MDB. It advised the fund on three acquisitions and arranged the sale of three bonds valued at a total of $6.5 billion that brought in $650 million for the firm.

“Goldman’s biggest, and last, transaction with 1MDB came in early 2013 when it sold $3 billion in bonds that the fund said would finance a real-estate-development project in the centre of Kuala Lumpur designed to spur economic development.”

The WSJ said US investigators were also looking into Goldman’s hiring of the daughter of a close aide to Najib and a move to hire Najib’s daughter too.

Leissner had recommended that Goldman hire both women, but when his Goldman colleagues shot down the idea of hiring one of them, Leissner recommended her to private-equity firm TPG, the report said.

“She went through a normal interview process and worked at TPG in a low-level marketing position from 2011 to 2014, in both London and Hong Kong, the people said,” according to the WSJ.