There may be many people named Gibran in Indonesia, but only two are widely recognised across the country.
The first is Gibran Rakabuming Raka, Indonesia's Vice President. He earned praise from many Indonesians for remaining calm during a controversial episode in which members of Parliament were seen dancing inside the parliamentary chamber. As public anger escalated into street protests and vandalism targeting lawmakers' private property, Gibran Rakabuming Raka was among the few prominent political figures who escaped becoming a target of the unrest.
The second is Gibran Huzaifah.
Unlike the Vice President, Gibran Huzaifah became well known not only in Indonesia but also within the international investment and startup community. Unfortunately, he is now serving a nine-year prison sentence in Indonesia.
How did he become so famous?
"Not every scam begins with the intention to deceive. Some begin with a dream of success before gradually evolving into a fraud that becomes impossible to stop."
That sentence perfectly describes the story of Gibran Huzaifah, a young Indonesian entrepreneur once hailed as the man who would transform the country's aquaculture industry.
Yet by the end of 2024, everything came crashing down.
What had long been celebrated as one of Southeast Asia's greatest startup success stories was later alleged to have been built on manipulated financial figures.
Within only a few weeks, Gibran's reputation changed dramatically—from startup icon to the central figure in what has been described as one of the largest corporate fraud scandals in Southeast Asian startup history.
Who Is Gibran Huzaifah?
Gibran Huzaifah graduated in Biology from the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB), one of Indonesia's most prestigious universities.
While studying there, he frequently witnessed the challenges faced by fish farmers. High feed costs and excessive feed wastage significantly reduced their profitability.
Those observations inspired a simple yet powerful idea.
Why not build an automated feeding machine that dispenses fish feed only when necessary?
That idea eventually became the foundation of eFishery, established in 2013.
eFishery: The Startup That Revolutionised Aquaculture
eFishery's first product was an Internet of Things (IoT)-based automatic fish feeder.
From that single innovation, the company expanded into a digital platform offering a comprehensive range of services for aquaculture farmers, including:
- Automated fish feeding systems
- Financing for farmers
- Fish feed procurement
- Marketing and distribution of harvested products
- Digital pond monitoring applications
The company's business model quickly attracted the attention of international investors.
Leading global venture capital firms invested heavily in eFishery, pushing its valuation beyond US$1 billion and making it the world's first unicorn in the aquaculture sector.
Behind the Success Story
What many investors did not realise was that the company was already under severe financial pressure.
According to Gibran's later admission, the problems began around 2018, when eFishery struggled to raise additional funding.
That was the turning point.
Instead of reporting the company's true financial condition, financial figures allegedly began to be manipulated.
Initially, the intention may have been simply to "save the company."
However, each new funding round required even larger exaggerations.
Eventually, the deception grew beyond anyone's ability to control.
How Was the Fraud Allegedly Carried Out?
A forensic audit reportedly found that eFishery maintained two separate sets of financial statements.
One set was used internally and reflected the company's actual financial performance.
The second set was prepared specifically for investors, banks, and external auditors.
It was this second version that allegedly portrayed the company as being far more profitable than it actually was.
The audit further alleged that:
- Revenue had been overstated by almost five times.
- Reported profits were actually losses.
- Revenue was overstated by nearly US$600 million during the nine months ending September 2024.
- The number of automated feeding machines reportedly in operation was significantly higher than the actual number deployed.
As the company expanded, the gap between reality and the financial figures presented to investors became increasingly wider.
Who Were the Victims?
Many people assume that investors were the primary victims.
Among those affected were several prominent international venture capital funds and institutional investors that invested hundreds of millions of dollars based on financial information that was later called into question.
Some of the most notable institutional investors included:
SoftBank
Its investment in eFishery was made through the SoftBank Vision Fund.
Bloomberg reported that investors could recover less than ten cents for every US$1 invested if the company's financial situation failed to improve.
Temasek Holdings
Temasek Holdings is a global investment company wholly owned by Singapore's Ministry of Finance.
As of 31 March 2026, Temasek's net portfolio value stood at approximately S$518 billion, equivalent to roughly US$400 billion.
Northstar Group
Headquartered in Singapore and Jakarta, the firm manages billions of U.S. dollars on behalf of pension funds, insurance companies, sovereign wealth funds, and financial institutions from around the world.
KWAP (Malaysia)
Malaysia's Retirement Fund Incorporated (KWAP) is a statutory body responsible for managing pension funds for Malaysian civil servants.
KWAP invested approximately RM200 million in eFishery—an investment widely expected to result in a substantial loss.
However, investors were not the only victims.
Employees lost their jobs following the crisis.
Business partners and suppliers faced tremendous uncertainty.
Perhaps the most unfortunate victims were Indonesia's fish and shrimp farmers.
Although most did not lose money directly because of the alleged financial fraud, they lost a company that had significantly improved the productivity and efficiency of their businesses.
How Large Were the Losses?
No official figure has been released detailing the losses suffered by each investor.
One confirmed amount was KWAP's investment of RM200 million (approximately US$49 million).
Bloomberg reported in April 2026 that approximately US$300 million in investor funds had been affected.
Lessons for Investors
The eFishery scandal serves as a powerful reminder that even companies receiving widespread media praise, winning prestigious awards, and attracting investments from globally respected institutions are not immune to fraud.
Many investors focus excessively on revenue growth, customer acquisition, and company valuation while overlooking the most fundamental question:
Are the reported profits real?
More importantly,
Are those profits supported by genuine operating cash flow?
In investing, accounting numbers can be manipulated for a period of time.
Cash flow, however, eventually reveals the truth.
The eFishery scandal demonstrates that a business built on manipulated financial statements may survive for several years, but sooner or later reality catches up.
For investors, the greatest lesson is this:
Do not be dazzled simply by the label "unicorn," billion-dollar valuations, or seemingly perfect success stories.
Instead, evaluate every company based on the integrity of its management, the transparency of its financial reporting, and its ability to generate genuine profits supported by sustainable cash flow.
Sabri Jalil
Licensed Remisier (1996–Present)
Investor | Speaker | Stock Market Course Organiser
Mobile: +60 13-723 3600
Comments