DA MP Mark Burke is facing allegations that the fintech company he founded has breached South Africa's exchange control regulations.
The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) is investigating Kastelo, the fintech chaired by DA finance chair Dr Mark Burke, over claims it moved R4 billion offshore in breach of exchange controls. Picture: Supplied.
The EFF has accused the DA of hypocrisy and financial misconduct after explosive allegations surfaced that a fintech company chaired by senior DA MP Mark Burke systematically bypassed South Africa’s exchange control regulations to externalise R4 billion.
This comes after the Johannesburg High Court dismissed an appeal by Kastelo, a fintech and cryptocurrency arbitrage trading provider, seeking to unfreeze its bank accounts while the Reserve Bank investigates it.
Judgment
Acting Judge S. Johnson handed down a decision dismissing Kastelo’s application and ordered costs on the punitive attorney‑and‑client scale.
The SARB’s explosive affidavit against Kastelo, founded and chaired by Burke, who also serves as the DA’s federal finance chairperson, paints a picture not of minor regulatory lapses but of outright financial crime.
In a court affidavit, a Reserve Bank investigator said there is reason to believe Kastelo has been using clients’ allowances to move funds offshore for its own benefit.
SARB investigation
Burke served as Kastelo’s CEO until June 2024, handing the reins to Nicholas Burke after being called to Parliament following the 2024 national elections, while remaining on as chairman.
According to the affidavit, Kastelo allegedly used clients’ single discretionary allowances and foreign investment allowances without their full knowledge, opened offshore bank accounts in their names, and misrepresented its activities in compliance declarations to the central bank.
The allegations include the use of third parties’ foreign investment and discretionary allowances to externalise funds, transactions allegedly conducted without clients’ knowledge or participation, and alleged misrepresentation of Kastelo’s activities in compliance declarations submitted to the Reserve Bank.
The Reserve Bank has already frozen a portion of Kastelo’s funds held at Access Bank, and a broader investigation is underway.
DA member
Burke’s political position makes the allegations particularly damaging. He sits on the DA’s federal executive as finance chairperson, responsible for internal financial controls and accountability, and serves in Parliament on committees overseeing national appropriations and finance.
The EFF said the allegations are scathing.
“This is not a paperwork error. It is the unauthorised use of other people’s money and identities, the concealment of offshore accounts, and deception of the central bank. That is financial crime, plain and simple.”
“The DA markets itself as the party of clean governance and financial discipline. Yet its own finance chairperson is implicated in a scheme that undermines the very principles they claim to uphold.”
ANC
Meanwhile, the ANC has called for the immediate removal of Burke from Parliament’s finance‑related committees following the allegations.
ANC Parliamentary Caucus spokesperson Hlengiwe Hadebe said Burke’s continued role on finance committees was “simply untenable” given the Reserve Bank’s affidavit.
“Parliament cannot demand accountability from the Reserve Bank while tolerating a glaring conflict of interest in its own oversight structures,” she stressed.
“Members of Parliament must be held to a higher standard. Mr Burke’s association with Kastelo falls far short of what South Africans expect from their leaders.”
Burke responds
In a statement on Tuesday, Burke said he isn’t personally being investigated.
“The High Court judgment does not make any finding of wrongdoing against Kastelo, nor myself.
“Nor does the judgment constitute a finding that exchange control contraventions have been proven. The matter before the court concerned whether the Reserve Bank had grounds to issue a blocking order while its investigation continues. The court found that it did,” he said.
Burke added he is confident that the Reserve Bank’s inquiry will find no wrongdoing on his part.
“Since entering parliament I have consistently informed my party and the finance committee secretary that I cannot be involved in any matters relating to the SARB to avoid any conflicts of interest. The record of recusal is very clear. I did this to maintain strong ethical boundaries and will continue to do so,” he said.
“I have furthermore ensured that all necessary declarations to parliament and the members interest register was done timeously and accurately.
“No allegation of misconduct or malfeasance has been made against me personally, and I am personally not subject to any investigation by any entity or agency.”
