ZELDA VENTER
Sekunjalo Investment Holdings said although the Competition Tribunal dismissed the company’s interim application compelling Nedbank to reinstate its banking facilities while the hearing into the prohibited practices complaint against the bank is concluded, the bank still has a case to answer.
In responding to the ruling against it, Sekunjalo stressed that this was only an interim ruling and the matter is far from over.
In noting the tribunal’s finding made on Thursday, the group said: “It is important to clarify that this ruling pertains solely to the interim application and should not be conflated with the ongoing Competition Commission case where several banks, including Nedbank, acted in concert to terminate banking services to Sekunjalo unlawfully.”
It said this matter is still to be heard together with the matter before the Equality Court in which Nedbank and other banks must account for their discriminatory actions against Sekunjalo.
“Nedbank still has a case to answer and challenging their actions through this application was necessary in the interests of justice. While Nedbank argued that Sekunjalo has alternative banking facilities, this is not uniformly true across our group, which underscores the importance of this challenge,” the group said in a statement issued on Thursday.
Despite the Tribunal's decision, Sekunjalo remains steadfast in its commitment to pursuing justice and addressing the broader systemic challenges faced by businesses subjected to financial exclusion on the basis of discrimination.
“We view this as part of a larger struggle to ensure that all South Africans and businesses are treated equitably within our banking and financial systems,” it said.
As the tribunal promised to issue its reasons later for its finding, the group said it awaits the detailed reasons.
It was argued last month on behalf of the group that the closure of its banking accounts by Nedbank and several other major banks is unjustified and irrational.
The closure came in the wake of the finding by the Competition Commission that these banks were guilty of colluding to push the Sekunjalo group out of the banking market.
The Competition Commission in its findings in November said: “The investigation found that the banks took a decision to terminate and/or refuse to open bank accounts for the Sekunjalo Group of companies. Sekunjalo will be forced to exit markets where they are active as a direct result of the banks’ decision to terminate and/or refuse to open bank accounts for them.”
The investigation also found that the decision by the banks to terminate and/or refuse to open bank accounts for Sekunjalo constitutes a prohibited concerted practice by firms in a horizontal relationship, which has the effect of lessening competition in markets where Sekunjalo is active.
The Commission has meanwhile requested the banks to provide written submissions that could justify their decision to terminate and/or refuse to open bank accounts for Sekunjalo.
The Commission is also consulting senior advocates to draw up an application to take its findings to the tribunal for final investigation and its verdict.
The panel was told during legal arguments for the banks to temporarily reopen the closed accounts, that there is no harm that faces Nedbank and the other banks if the termination of the accounts is reversed.
zelda.venter@inl.co.za