World Bank division presses Net1 UEPS on lending practices and lack of transparency
The World Bank’s International Finance Corporation (IFC) said it’s pressing Net1 UEPS Technologies to complete an assessment of its lending practices this year as human rights organisations allege that the company’s subsidiaries are improperly marketing goods and services to the more than 17-million South Africans on welfare. Last year, the IFC bought a 17% stake in Net1 for $107m, its biggest-ever investment in the financial technology industry, making it the largest shareholder in the company that distributes welfare payments to the poorest third of South Africans on behalf of the government. Allan Gray, Net1’s second-biggest shareholder with a 15.6% stake, has said it’s concerned about the company’s communications with shareholders about loan charges and deductions. Net1, which has denied behaving improperly, holds stakes in a range of companies that sell services and goods, such as loans and cellphone airtime, to welfare recipients in SA. Human rights groups, including The Black...
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