FSRA ALLEGES: ECSPONENT, GETBUCKS CULPRITS IN E335M DISAPPEARANCE

MBABANE – The FSRA has alleged that ESWIG, formerly Ecsponent Eswatini (Pty) Ltd, and GetBucks Eswatini (Pty) Ltd are the culprits in the disappearance of investors’ E335 million.
As a result, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA), Ncamiso Ntshalintshali, said Eswatini Investment Group (ESWIG) and Ligagu Investments (Pty) Ltd, trading as GetBucks Eswatini (Pty) Ltd, are allegedly conflicted and cannot supervise the recovery of the funds for the investors. He told the court that FSRA is the only authority that has the power to liquidate the scheme operated by ESWIG.

Tracing

Ntshalintshali said the process of recovering the investors’ funds can only be undertaken by tracing the ultimate beneficiaries of the scheme and then dismantling and liquidating the scheme. “It is through liquidation of the scheme in accordance with the provisions of the FSRA Act that the investor funds can be recovered in a manner envisaged by the law regulating the sector. “Any other method of recovery would fall short and would be unlikely to result in a fair and equitable recovery and distribution of the funds that would be recovered from the liquidation of the scheme,” said Natshalintshali.

He argued that ESWIG and Ligagu Investments (Pty) Ltd, trading as GetBucks Eswatini (Pty) Ltd, are conflicted and cannot supervise the recovery of the funds for the investors. He alleged that the two companies are actually the culprits and they operated a pyramid scheme. He said Ligagu Investments is the main beneficiary and recipient of the funds allegedly fleeced from investors by ESWIG, according to FSRA. The FSRA CEO submitted that ESWIG is also reliant on funding from Ligagu Investments.
According to Ntshalintshali, it is in the public interest that FSRA immediately invokes its powers conferred by law by appointing a curator to take charge of the winding up of the scheme.
“This will allow the first defendant (FSRA), through the curator, to pursue recovery against the first and third plaintiffs (ESWIG and Ligagu), the directors of the entities and the beneficiaries of the money laundering pyramid scheme,” submitted Ntshalintshali.

The veracity of these allegations is still to be tested in court. FSRA is represented by Mangaliso Magagula of Magagula and Hlophe Attorneys.ESWIG, according to the FSRA CEO, allegedly violated Section 47 of the FSRA Act by engaging in conduct that is misleading and deceptive in that they purportedly solicited funds from investors under the guise that it was investing it on their behalf and that the money would yield attractive returns.

Misleading

This representation, according to Ntshalintshali, was deceptive and misleading. He argued that it was made with the intention of deceiving the investors to invest in ESWIG, which he referred to as a pyramid scheme. He said Section 47(2) of the FSRA Act entitles anyone who suffers loss as a result of misleading and/or deceptive conduct of a financial service provider to recover the amount of the loss from the financial services provider.The CEO submitted that in the present case, the investors are entitled to recover the amount of the loss, E335 million, from ESWIG.He said Section 47 of the Act provides that: (1) An authorised financial services provider shall not, in connection with its business, engage in conduct that is misleading or deceptive or likely to mislead or deceive. The matter is pending in court.

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