Reserve Bank’s opening gambit on Jooste ‘a game changer’

The Reserve Bank’s opening gambit on Markus Jooste, the disgraced and suspended chartered accountant and former chief executive of Steinhoff, is a game changer.

The bank made a successful application to the Western Cape High Court in Cape Town for an urgent order authorising the attachment of all assets linked to Jooste, on the basis that the Silveroak Trust, Markus Jooste, and Lanzerac Estate Investments (Lanzerac), are suspected “to have benefitted or to have been enriched” by contravening exchange control regulations.

It is important to note that the assets have been attached, not forfeited. They are in effect frozen and may not be sold until the investigation has been finalised.

Notices of attachment attached to the high court order were issued by the Reserve Bank’s Prudential Cluster in terms of the Exchange Control Regulation 22C(1).

ALSO READ: Reserve Bank attaches ex-Steinhoff CEO Markus Jooste’s properties

After about five years of Jooste suffering no consequences flowing from his involvement in the implosion of Steinhoff, the Reserve Bank’s action affords some satisfaction to affected parties.

Even the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA) has not taken decisive action yet, saying “disciplinary processes against Mr Markus Jooste [are] ongoing, however, his membership of SAICA was suspended pending the outcome of the disciplinary processes”.

‘NPA must wake up from deep slumber’

Union federation Cosatu spokesperson Sizwe Pamla said they hoped the seizing of assets by the bank would be extended to all assets of Jooste and his associates.

“This must be done with speed to prevent the disposal of assets,” Pamla said.

“The National Prosecuting Authority needs to be woken up from its deep slumber. They cannot be allowed to continue to sleepwalk on such a massive alleged criminal operation.”

Pamla said the South African Revenue Service (Sars) needed to be enlisted to support efforts to ensure Jooste and his associates, as well as others accused of tampering with workers’ monies, are audited, pay their taxes and are thoroughly scrutinised.

ALSO READ: Markus Jooste, three others, fined R241 million for Steinhoff insider trading

It is possible Jooste’s alleged complex ownership structures and alleged illicit financial transactions will now be exposed, as the high court has granted the Reserve Bank’s appointed forensic experts, Cyanre, The Digital Forensic Lab, unfettered access to all devices, passwords, books, documents, records, “including information or data stored or recorded electronically, digitally, photographically, magnetically or optically… Devices include CDs, DVDs, memory sticks, flash drives, tablets, hard drives, servers, smart phones and/or cellphones”.

Any books or documents relevant to any contravention of exchange control regulations is to be made available, including correspondence, bank accounts, bank statements, details of moneys transferred to or from Jooste, to any of the entities related or linked to Jooste.

If Jooste feels he holds a valid objection to the Reserve Bank accessing, analysing or using some of the information, and he has 15 days to object in writing.

The forensic expert will also have access to Lanzerac’s correspondence, communications, bank accounts, details of transfers of funds and all books of account.

The assets to be attached so far amount to R1.4 billion for Silveroaks, R2.3 billion for Jooste’s vehicles and personal effects and R132 million for Lanzerac. This figure will increase if new assets come to light. The attached assets include jewellery, paintings, firearms, the family home in Hermanus, the Lanzerac Hotel and Spa and vehicles registered in the name of Petrus Albertus Venter and Ingrid Jooste.

Ingrid Jooste has been given five days to disclose the whereabouts of all her assets owned since December 2017 to date.

Jooste is allowed to keep his clothing.

The Silveroak trustees have five days to declare the whereabouts of all the assets of the trust declared in its financial statements from 2019 to date.

The onus is on the bank to prove that the exchange controls were contravened. And if so, it will issue a notice of forfeiture order to the value of the contravention.

If the Reserve Bank does identify any undisclosed offshore assets, the question arises as to whether Sars would then be able to step in and make use of the information to track down any undisclosed income. Sars could then make use of its many exchange of information agreements.

ALSO READ: Germany charges Jooste, Steinhoff execs after six-year probe

Production company Idea Candy has produced a three-part documentary series to unpack the scam. Entitled Steinheist, the series reveals how Jooste duped auditors, regulators all around the world and one of the most respected and revered boards of directors of a JSE-listed company.

In an interview with Moneyweb, director of the documentary, Richard Finn Gregory, said it had taken them “about five years just to really grapple with the enormity of what’s been going on”.

“We’ve known there have been investigations going on over the past few years, but it took the German tax authorities five years, from 2015, just to figure out what it was that they wanted to try and prosecute various people on. So I think what it shows is that what was going on was incredibly complicated.”

– news@citizen.co.za