Maine withdraws from ABSA after claim of currency meddling
African National Congress Youth League President Collen Maine on Monday announced that he was withdrawing his savings and terminating relations with ABSA Bank.
This follows the ANCYL’s claim last week Thursday that Barclays Bank and Goldman Sachs were responsible for the fall in the value of the Rand. Absa Bank is Barclay’s subsidiary in South Africa.
ANCYL National Spokesperson Mlondi Mkhize said the action by Maine to close his ABSA account at the Grove Mall branch in Pretoria, was part of the boycotting process pledged by the youth league at Luthuli House.
“We also want the African National Congress to follow suit. We want government to also withdraw from ABSA and follow suit. Maine’s actions are in line with our statement that we made about Barclays and Goldman Sachs,” said Mkhize
On Thursday, the ANCYL claimed that American multinational investment bankers Goldman Sachs and British banking giant Barclays Bank were solely to blame for the Rand’s dramatic loss in value during the past few months.
At a press conference in Johannesburg, Maine had charged that the two companies had been working together selling off the local currency.
“The excessive selling by Barclays has in turn reduced the demand for the South African Rand. They have not been doing it alone.
They have been doing this with the assistance of their American counterparts, Goldman Sachs.
The plan is to sell so much of the Rand currency in order to drive down its price and then to later re-purchase it, which will push up its value as demand for it increases.”
Maine had said that Barclays had no interest in developing the South African economy, but was instead prioritising that of the United Kingdom.
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