Competition Tribunal interdicts closure of Sekunjalo bank accounts

The Competition Tribunal on Friday granted interim relief to the Sekunjalo Group, preventing Standard Bank, Mercantile and Bidvest from closing its bank accounts.

The tribunal also ordered Nedbank, Absa, FirstRand; Sasfin and Access Bank to reopen bank accounts that have already been closed.

The tribunal said the interim relief will subsist for a period of six months from the date of the tribunal’s order or pending the conclusion of an investigation by the Competition Commission into a complaint regarding restrictive practices filed by the Sekunjalo Group against the banks, whichever occurs first.

In a statement, the tribunal said a total of 36 applicants, including Sekunjalo Group chairperson Dr Iqbal Survé, brought the interim relief application against nine banks.

The applicants claimed the banks’ conduct, in terminating the banking relationship with them, constituted an abuse of dominance and/or collusive conduct in contravention of the Competition Act.  

The banks justified their conduct on the basis of the reputational risk of dealing with the Sekunjalo Group due to findings of malfeasance and impropriety made by Justice Lex Mpati who chaired a commission of inquiry into the dealings of Ayo (a company affiliated with Sekunjalo) with the Public Investment Corporation.  

However, the tribunal dismissed the group’s interim relief application in relation to Investec, as the relevant accounts were seemingly used for the personal banking of Survé.

It said these accounts have no bearing on the ability of the Sekunjalo Group to compete or sustain itself in the markets in which it operates.

Survé also had personal accounts with Nedbank unrelated to any business activities and these were excluded from the order.

The tribunal said an account of Ayo Technology Solutions Ltd, one of the companies in the Sekunjalo Group, held with a Nedbank entity in Lesotho which is not cited as a respondent before the tribunal, is excluded from the order.

Regarding Sasfin, an account held with it by ESP Africa (Pty) Ltd  — a company in the Sekunjalo Group — has been excluded from the order as it was blocked from inception due to non-compliance with FICA requirements.

The tribunal said there was no requirement in its order that the banks open any new bank account that did not previously exist or that they provide any additional services not previously provided to the applicable applicants.  

A public version of its reasons for its decision will be available in due course once any claimed confidential information contained in the reasons has been finalised, the tribunal added. 

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