So where did the Guptas’ money go?
The Guptas are in big legal trouble if the money left SA without authorisation
It is important in my experience to know what you know. But it’s more important to know what you don’t know. There is an important distinction between not knowing something and being precisely aware of what it is that you don’t know. Over the weekend, the finance ministry, in a brilliant act of faux innocence, went to court to obtain a declaration that it was not permitted to cajole local banks to open bank accounts of the Gupta family. It purportedly did so in recognition but not in support of the family’s pleas. It was a genius double-switch, because in doing so, it creates a legal basis to request from the Financial Intelligence Centre (FIC) a list of reportable transactions. The total amount on that list is a staggering R6.84bn. Who knew the family was flashing that kind of cash? What is more, large amounts that were previously the subject of pure speculation are now quantified exactly. One notable transaction concerns the Optimum Mine Rehabilitation Trust, and the amount involv...
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