Glencore, the Swiss commodities group led by South African executive Gary Nagle, has walked away from its longtime trading partner Radiant World, accusing the iron ore merchant of sending faked invoices to banks in a fallout that has quickly spilled into court.

The Swiss mining and trading giant cut ties just as Radiant World and 10 linked firms filed a lawsuit in Singapore, demanding S$2.5 billion ($2 billion) in damages. The counterpunch marks an acrimonious split between two commodity players that spent years operating hand in glove.

Glencore, led by CEO Nagle, said Tuesday it has closed the door on Radiant World and associated companies, including Sapphire Minmetals, having “exited all obligations.”

The company escalated the feud by alleging outright fraud. Glencore said it uncovered “confirmed evidence” that Radiant World and its affiliates “sent falsified invoices and contracts as well as fabricated emails, which they fraudulently claimed to have received from Glencore personnel, to a number of financial institutions.”

Traders sue Glencore in Singapore dispute

The Singapore suit, filed Sept. 15, takes aim at three Glencore operating units. The claimants include trading desks across Singapore, Hong Kong, the United Arab Emirates and Switzerland, according to court filings, with an initial conference set for Oct. 21.

Rakesh Sethi, chairman of Sapphire Minmetals, said by phone Tuesday that both firms are teaming up on the claim, though he declined to elaborate. A spokesperson for Radiant World declined to comment on Sethi’s remarks, while a Singapore representative did not immediately answer inquiries about the lawsuit.

Radiant World and Sapphire Minmetals maintain that Glencore broke its word, alleging the abrupt exit breached firm contracts and left them nursing deep losses. Glencore dismissed the pushback.

“These claims are meritless and we will contest them vigorously,” the company said. “We have incurred losses and been exposed to risks by Radiant World companies and will take appropriate action.”

Inside Glencore’s $480 million trading dispute

The bad blood already carries a heavy price tag. Glencore previously took a $480 million hit on the exposure—ranking among the steepest trading hits on its books since going public. “We take these issues seriously and are conducting a review of our historic business activities with Radiant World, Sapphire Minmetals and associated companies,” Glencore said.

For years, the relationship was an open pipeline. Glencore traded heavily with Radiant World, unlocked credit for the firm, and held warrants that allowed it to buy an equity stake. In a November 2024 WhatsApp exchange cited by Radiant World’s lawyers, Peter Hill, Glencore’s head of steelmaking raw materials, reportedly wrote that Glencore had “basically bankrolled your entire existence for the last few years.”

That alliance cracked earlier this year when lenders showed up at Glencore’s doors carrying Radiant World invoices bearing Glencore’s name—paperwork Glencore could not verify. In response, rival commodity houses pulled their credit lines in July, following concerns over bogus bank documentation. Radiant World pushed back at the time, denying wrongdoing and insisting it plays by the book.

The legal fallout extends well beyond Singapore. Incomlend, a Singapore trade-finance shop, sued Radiant World after lending money against Glencore paperwork that turned out to be questionable. In London, Jefferies Financial Group went a step further, alleging a “fraudulent scheme” built on fake iron ore invoices—a claim that prompted a judge to slap a $499 million global asset freeze on Radiant World and Sapphire Minmetals.