Kuala Lampur, Jan. 10 -- By any outward appearance, it looked like a simple property deal.

Two landowners signed Sale and Purchase Agreements (SPAs) to "sell" their properties to a woman who agreed to pay the full purchase price. The contracts even had a buy-back option, which allowed the original owners to repurchase the properties if they wanted to. Everything was documented by lawyers. On paper, it was a routine conveyancing transaction.

But the Court of Appeal in Tang Ser Chiew & Another v. Lee Mei Kim ruled that it was nothing of the sort.

What was camouflaged as a routine property sale was, in reality, an illegal money-lending operation that charged a 60 per centinterest per year and used people's homes as collateral. This result...