Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader Julius Malema says those responsible for the manipulation of the rand against the dollar must be held accountable.
In the past few weeks, the Competition Commission indicated that some banks implicated in the manipulation of the rand generated about a trillion rand a day between 2007 and 2013.
About five of the 28 banks have admitted involvement in the currency manipulation 16 years ago. Others have sought the legal route to appeal the jurisdiction of the Competition Commission.
Malema says action must be taken against the culprits.
“These ones who have manipulated the rand and stole trillions and trillions, they have no faces, but who is behind those banks, what are the faces of these people, where do they stay, they don’t tell us.”
Competition Commission calls for tougher penalties on banks:
On Wednesday the Competition Commission’s Head of Cartel, Mohale Mohlala, said the settlements reached with the banks that admitted to manipulating the currency are based on the size of their firms in the country.
This as the commission announced that it has entered into a settlement agreement with Standard Chartered, which acknowledged its liability and agreed to pay an administrative penalty of R42.7 million.
This sparked controversy, as some felt it was a slap on the wrist.
The commission is also investigating a number of other local and international banks, such as Absa, Standard Bank, Nedbank, Barclays, and Bank of America.
Mohlala said they would be lenient to those who come forward and call out others.
