Rand manipulation - Competition Commission proceeds against Banks.
In 2017 a number of banks were referred to the Competition Tribunal for price fixing involving the rand. There were numerous applications and objections brought by the various banks however 28 of these banks have now been brought under investigation.
The commission is calling it the “Forex Cartel” case and includes banks like Nedbank, Investec, Standard Bank, ABSA and FirstRand.
The Competition Tribunal is investigating the ongoing case of alleged currency manipulation.
The commission found that from 2007 onwards the banks had a general agreement, colluding on the prices for bids and spot rates for currency trading between the rand and dollar.
This manipulation od the currency had a considerable impact on the cost of living for South Africans and affected many spheres of business.
On 30 March 2023 the Competition Tribunal handed down a judgement, dismissing all the various applications/objections brought by 15 of the banks which includes Standard Bank, Nedbank, FirstRand Bank, where the respondents are trying to stop the prosecutions against them.
The full Tribunal ruling can be read on this link Case Media Releases (comptrib.co.za)
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