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FCA embroiled in Gupta saga

Chris Hamblin, Editor, London, 24 October 2017

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Britain's Financial Conduct Authority has asked HSBC and Standard Chartered to scan any accounts that they might be holding in connection with the HNW Gupta family which has been accused of wielding undue influence over the president of South Africa.

The FCA told Compliance Matters: "The FCA is already in contact with both banks named and will consider carefully further responses received." It would, however, say no more. The Wall Street Journal recently reported that Chancellor Philip Hammond had asked the FCA to investigate.

Ajay, Atul and Rajesh (aka Tony) Gupta moved to South Africa from India in 1993 - drawn, it is said, by the liberating lack of red tape that faced businesses there. They set up the £14-million-a-year Sahara computer group and are now in charge of a media, air travel, energy and IT empire. Oakbay Investments is the holding company for their businesses in South Africa.

The Guptas have contracts - some say procured through personal friendship with Zuma, which the family and the president hotly deny - with some government or state-owned enterprises and, according to the British Broadcasting Corporation, have employed some of President Zuma's relatives in the recent past. His daughter Duduzile was reportedly a director at Sahara Computers and his son Duduzane a director of other Gupta companies until he jettisoned all posts last year under intense media scrutiny. One of Zuma's wives once worked for JIC Mining Services, also part of the Gupta empire.

'Guptagate' was one name given to the story of a private Gupta jet being given clearance to land at Waterkloof Air Force base in 2013, carrying Indian guests to a family wedding near the capital of Pretoria. The use of public facilities for an exercise in private luxury caused a stir at the time.

Reuters reported in the middle of this month that South Africa's finance minister, Pravin Gordhan, showed in a court affidavit distributed by the Treasury that R6.8 billion (€422 million) in payments made by the wealthy Gupta brothers (and their companies and other people called Gupta) had been the subject of suspicious transaction reports by banks to the country's Financial Intelligence Centre during the last few years. It also reported that there is an 'official investigation' into any influence that the Guptas might have on Zuma.

In August, Reuters and other news agencies reported that the Guptas had declared their intention to pull out of South African business.

Last year Atul Gupta attained 7th position on the Sunday Times' Rich List for South Africa.  Black men occupied only 35 of the 200 positions on the rich list, while black women had seven. A pressure group called Save South Africa recently stated that black HNW ownership of the economy was declining and expressed its concern about the trend.

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