VBS CEO: I knew, did not hear anything

The former CEO of VBS Mutual Bank claims to know nothing of the appalling amount of fraud that would have cost the bank 1.5 billion rand that it ran.

Andile Ramavhunga this week filed a sworn affidavit to VBS curator, Anoosh Rooplal & # 39; s. request to sequestrate him and the other directors of VBS, and liquidate his majority shareholder, Vele Investments.

He does not confirm or deny that the fraud occurred at the bank that he ran, but simply said that no one told him about it.

He says he was not present at the meetings where the fraud was allegedly orchestrated by Tshifhiwa Matodzi, the bank's president and Vele Investments.

According to his affidavit, a number of VBS bosses met at the Sundowner Bar in Randburg on March 11 – the day after VBS became a trustee.

When an argument ensued between the alleged brain, Matodzi, and the old VBS Phèdre Mukhodobwane, Ramavhunga claims that he immediately went to the door.

He took with him his colleague and business partner, Tsumba Matambele, VBS marketing and branding consultant, saying that "we were now exposed". to information of which we had no knowledge, "according to Ramavhunga's version

Mukhodobwane is the main source of evidence on VBS fraud.

According to Ramavhunga, "on or around" the same day, Mukhodobwane called him.

"I received a frantic phone call from Mukhodobwane, stating that he was receiving threatening phone calls."

R15 MILLION BONUS & # 39; LEGIT & # 39;

In addition to claiming ignorance and raising several technical issues objections, Ramavhunga is challenging a single allegation made specifically against him in an explosive affidavit filed two weeks ago by Rooplal – which he has received a bonus of 15 million rupees from VBS funded by one of the many fictitious deposits that the bank's bosses would have created to steal more than R1.5 billion of true depositors.

The R15 million was a legitimate success fee to negotiate the acquisition of Mvunonala Holdings of Vele Investments R300 last year, Ramavhunga claims.

This acquisition, like all major acquisitions made by Vele during 2016 and last year, would have been funded by scrapping VBS for the necessary money.

Ramavhunga says that he was paid the 15 million R after negotiating the agreement with his friend Bongani Mhlanga, who owned Mvunonala

The bank statements before the court incidentally show that Mhlanga was personally paid 12.5 million rand by Vele Investments over three months corresponding to the transaction – from September to November of last year

. wanting to set up more transactions for Vele. The couriers included in the Ramavhunga court documents show that Mhlanga advises Ramavhunga to buy somehow the Agribank, a Zimbabwean state-owned company, a similar entity to the Land Bank of South Africa

]. It's a Zimbabwean bank that I want you to buy. I will see the bank's CEO on Monday. Probably when you get there I can squeeze a meeting for us three, "wrote Mhlanga to Ramavhunga on August 4 amid the wave of Vele's acquisition.

Ramavhunga claims that it was just another person to find deals for Vele in exchange for commissions

City Press reported last week how the 27-year-old businessman Kabelo Matsepe received about 12 million rand from Vele, according to bank statements.While Matsepe and other "agents" had written contracts, Ramavhunga said his contract was concluded "orally".

THE AFFIDAVIT OF RAMAVHUNGA DEVOTED THAT :

.] Ramavhunga acted as an "agent" for a company called Mamepe Capital since 2013 – the year he joined VBS. [19659002] Mamepe Capital and VBS are involved in a legal drama in Namibia related to the implosion of And At about 200 million rupees from the SME Bank funds were invested via Mamepe and deposited in VBS at the end of 2016, but would have disappeared thereafter.

The liquidators of SME Bank are fighting a series of court cases, after which they can institute an appropriate investigation into what happened to the money.

A source close to the Namibian fiasco said it was "new" that Ramavhunga had ties to Mamepe. Ramavhunga had already filed an affidavit in Namibia on this subject without mentioning the potential conflict.

The agent negotiating a deposit of 1 billion rupees to VBS by the passenger train Agency of SA (Prasa) last year was Bhekwayinkosi Gift Manyanga through his company Bhekwam Holdings. Manyanga received 1.5 million rand for accepting Prasa's investment, which was subsequently canceled

This corresponds to Rooplal's earlier allegation that "Prasa people" received 1 , 5 million rand to secure the deposit intended to rescue VBS from a liquidity crisis in November.

Ramavhunga provided the court with a copy of a contract between VBS and Bhekwam. This contract, however, specifically provides for "consulting services" in the amount of 130,000 rand per month, as well as a "performance incentive". As Ramavhunga claims in his affidavit, Ramavhunga

. While Ramavhunga defends his 15 million rand rights at Vele, he does not explain why he also received a R300. 000 of Vele, who is visible in his bank statements, and that he himself attached to his court papers. He was the CEO of VBS, not Vele.

. Ramavhunga claims that VBS's troubles began in August after the Treasury informed the municipalities that they could not invest in a mutual bank. However, this contradicts an affidavit earlier this year by Deputy Governor of SA Reserve Bank, Kuben Naidoo, who said that the first "Tension Liquidity Event" at VBS occurred in June. 20 last year, two months before the letter of the Treasury to the municipalities. That day, VBS could not find the 295 million rand it needed to settle with other banks at the end of the day.

* SIGN UP FOR FREE: Get the best news and opinions from Fin24 Inbox