EFishery founder detained as financial manipulation probe deepens

Gibran Huzaifah, CEO and co-founder of eFishery / Photo credit: eFishery

Gibran Huzaifah, the founder and former chief executive of the troubled startup eFishery, has been detained by Indonesian police over suspicions of embezzlement and the manipulation of the aquatech firm’s financial reports.

“Mr G. has been in custody since Thursday, July 31,” said Helfi Assegaf, director of the National Police’s Special Economic Crimes Directorate.

Two former eFishery vice presidents, Angga Hadrian Raditya and Andri Yadi, were also detained. Authorities alleged that the three inflated the company’s revenues over several years to make eFishery appear more promising and attract investors.

The Business Times has reached out to FTI Consulting, which took over the management of eFishery in early February, for comment.

EFishery, an Indonesian aquatech firm previously valued at US$1 billion, has been accused of manipulating its financial reports, with some saying the firm inflated its revenue by as much as US$600 million as of September 2024.

In December last year, Gibran and eFishery chief product officer Chrisna Aditya stepped down from their positions following the launch of an internal investigation into the allegations.

The scandal has sent shockwaves through Southeast Asia’s startup ecosystem, as eFishery had attracted major investors like SoftBank and Temasek.

Since the case surfaced, the Bandung-based company has ceased operations and laid off more than a dozen employees.

See also: EFishery’s woes push banks to rethink startup loans