The transfer of the BSI business included client relationships and employees, EFG International said in a statement today. EFG International announced its intention to acquire Swiss-based BSI before the scandal surrounding 1MDB caught the public's eye.

The operational integration of the Singapore branch marked the first step in the gradual process of migrating BSI's business into EFG International, the bank said. The process of taking over BSI's operations will be executed market by market, according to the statement.

Further Steps to Follow in 2017

EFG International expects to complete the necessary legal steps by the second quarter of the coming year. The migration of the BSI operations to EFG's IT platform is scheduled to be finalized by the end of 2017.