This endangered fish is native to the Southeast Asian island of Borneo, where only known from the Kinabatangan and Segama river basins in Sabah, East Malaysia.

[1][2][3] First described in 1992 based on an aquarium specimen,[4] its exact range was not entirely certain, leading some source to incorrectly also report it from Indonesia.

[7] It is replaced in Brunei, Sarawak, and North, East and West Kalimantan by the closely related O. septemfasciatus (this species may also occur in Sabah, but that is unconfirmed).

[4][8][9] The common giant gourami (O. goramy) occurs at least in Sarawak and West Kalimantan, but this species is possibly not native to Borneo, instead being introduced.

Body colour varies from gray-blue to gray-green to brown, darker on the back.