Accused of helping to carry out an international multibillion-dollar fraud, Goldman Sachs has tried to pin the blame on a few rogue bankers.

It is an argument that the government of Malaysia, where the fraud was carried out, is not buying.

“We have suffered extremely large losses, and you were the financial adviser,” said Lim Guan Eng, the finance minister of Malaysia, referring to Goldman Sachs.

“Now how do you account for that? And don’t tell me you don’t know where the money went,” Mr. Lim said in an interview in Hong Kong on Monday. “Goldman Sachs needs to come to terms with the facts.”

Malaysia is gearing up for a fight with an institution that was once synonymous with power and influence around the world. The government is seeking $7.5 billion in compensation from Goldman Sachs, adding to a mounting pile of penalties against the bank and deepening one of the most serious crises in its 149-year history.