Six leading banks, including Anglo-South African banking giant Investec, are facing a full trial for allegedly manipulating the rand. However, other major African banks have succeeded in being excluded from the high-profile action
South Africa’s highest court ruled on Tuesday (30 June) that the country’s Competition Commission can proceed in its long-running action against major global banks for allegedly colluding to manipulate the exchange rate between the US dollar and the South African rand
The dispute will now be referred back to the Competition Tribunal of South Africa. The six banks facing the next step in the battle are Anglo-South African international banking group Investec, BNP Paribas, JPMorgan Chase & Co, JPMorgan Chase Bank NA, Standard Americas Incorporated and HSBC Bank
The Constitutional Court’s ruling, handed down by Justice Owen Rogers, ultimately rejected many of the Commission’s arguments against an earlier ruling made by the Competition Appeal Court (CAC). As such, the Commission’s appeal against 28 local and global institutions has left just six banks facing the substantive allegations made against them
The case was sparked by a complaint initiated by the Commission in 2015, which was then referred to the Competition Tribunal in 2017 and subsequently went through two proceedings each at the Competition Tribunal and the CAC
The Commission asserts that traders at numerous South African and global banks colluded to manipulate the foreign exchange rate between the US dollar and the South African rand between 2007 and 2013
The banks now excluded from the action include African banking giants FirstRand and the Standard Bank of South Africa
A spokesperson for the Commission said the regulator was still studying the judgment and would respond comprehensively in due course.
Also in South Africa, the Commission last month referred a complaint against Adcock Ingram Critical Care to the Competition Tribunal for alleged excessive pricing in the renal dialysis market
