AmBank officer Rosliza Ishak said the “VIP client” received the money from June to December 2014 from two foreign firms known as Blackrock Commodities Limited and Vista Equity International Partners.

She told the High Court the bank paid the client in ringgit after converting the British pound according to the exchange rate at the material time.

The prosecution, in its opening statement, had said that between June 23, 2014 and Dec 19, 2014, Najib had received the money and that it was initially meant to redeem a 49% share option 1MDB had granted to Aabar Investment PJS.

Aabar had earlier assisted 1MDB Energy and 1MDB Energy (Langat) Sdn Bhd to obtain the bond guarantee from International Petroleum Investment Company or IPIC.

Rosliza added that she did not know Najib was the said VIP client until investigations started in 2015.

“It was just a code name (given) for us (to use),” she said, in response to lawyer Wan Aizudin Wan Mohamed’s question regarding the client’s identity.

Rosliza also said she could not confirm if the then relationship manager, Joanna Yu, had personally communicated with Najib and told him about the foreign funds in his account.

Najib is on trial over 25 charges of abuse of power and money laundering involving funds amounting to RM2.28 billion that were deposited into his AmBank accounts between February 2011 and December 2014.

The hearing continues before judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah, with former deputy treasurer-general Siti Zauyah Mohd Desa slated to continue her testimony.