CARMEL RICKARD: Big fish to fry as Mozambican corruption scandal heads to court
In a victory for transparency, a case related to Mozambique’s $2bn ‘tuna bond’ corruption scandal will be heard in open court in the UK
A significant judgment earlier this month will help shape Mozambique’s efforts to deal with the fallout from its $2bn “tuna bond” corruption scandal. That outrage against one of the world’s poorest countries — it is ranked 181 out of 189 states on the human development index — caused a collapse of its economy and pushed millions of people further into poverty.
The story involves loans arranged for Mozambique by Credit Suisse, working with a subsidiary of Russian bank VTB, between 2012 and 2016. At that stage the loans amounted to $1bn and were ostensibly intended to finance several major government schemes, among them a fleet of fishery vessels commissioned from international shipbuilding group Privinvest. But there were procedural irregularities involved — for example, the deals were concluded in secret, without the legally required approval of parliament. ..
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.