FOREIGN-EXCHANGE COLLUSION
Citibank settlement will not blunt commission’s teeth for other banks
Competition regulators and Citibank deadlocked on the percentage the commission levied in determining the R69.5m fine
The Competition Tribunal’s deferral of a decision on the Competition Commission’s settlement with Citibank for its role in the bank foreign-exchange collusion scandal will not affect the commission’s ability to seek the maximum 10% fine on 16 other banking entities. "It will not affect our ability to get the 10%," said Makgale Mohlala, head of the commission’s cartels division. "This is a settlement, which is always lower than the penalty imposed upon prosecution." On Wednesday, the competition regulators and Citibank deadlocked on the percentage the commission levied on the bank’s annual turnover in determining the R69.5m fine Citibank has to pay to settle charges that it colluded with 17 entities to rig rand-dollar trade. Mohlala said Citibank claimed its financial information was confidential. Citi, the bank’s parent company, did not respond to requests for comment. The commission is seeking an order from the tribunal confirming the R69.5m settlement. It is not seeking a penalty ...
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