CitiBank to pay R69.5m penalty for collusion
The Competition Commission has reached a settlement with Citibank for collusion.
The commission filed with the Competition Tribunal an agreement reached with Citibank for being part of the forex trading cartel.
The commission found that from at least 2007, Citibank and its competitors had a general agreement to collude on prices.
Citibank will pay an administrative penalty of R69.5-million.
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The commission referred a collusion case to the tribunal for prosecution against 17 banks - including ABSA, Standard Bank and Investec.
In a statement, Commissioner Tembinkosi Bonakele said this settlement was done "to encourage speedy settlement and full disclosure to strengthen the evidence for prosecution of the other banks.”
The settlement figure does not exceed 10% of Citibank annual turnover in South Africa. The bank has undertaken to cooperate with the Commission and avail witnesses to assist the prosecution of the other banks that colluded in the rand price-fixing scandal.