South African best and worst banks list
A new report by social intelligence firm, Ubiquity, has revealed which of South Africa’s retail banks are winning over the country’s social media populace.
The report analysed Absa, Capitec, FNB, Nedbank and Standard Bank, gauging the opinions of South Africans on social media around key banking issues, such as customer service, banking fees, credit and savings.
http://businesstech.co.za/news/banking/94995/south-africas-best-and-worst-banks-list/
Securitization – Ostrich farmer from Eastern Cape shows court his mortgage loan is now in Taiwan
Ash Davenport, a 63 year-old ostrich farmer from outside Grahamstown in the Eastern Cape, may be about to make history in his effort to stave off attempts by Standard Bank to take possession of his 3,260ha farm over a R3 million loan he took out seven years ago.
Last week he threw the Grahamstown High Court into a spin when his attorney, Bev Carruthers of Port Elizabeth, plonked a securitisation audit in front of the judge. The securitisation audit suggests that his bank loan has been on-sold to a Taiwanese bank and is no longer owned by Standard Bank. That being the case, Standard Bank has no right to be in court. More than that, the audit suggests the bank has securitised (or on-sold) his bond for R5 million, not the R3 million he supposedly signed for.
The court reserved judgment as to whether to allow the audit to be presented as new evidence in a case that has been dragging on for close to seven years.
“I intend to fight this all the way,” says Davenport. “These banks have been getting away with this nonsense for too long. I had to pay R17,000 for the audit but it was worth it, since it provides proof that the bank has in fact been securitising mortgage loans and then coming after property owners when they have no right to.”
Securitisation audits are a new development in South Africa, but are common in the US. They effectively carry the same weight as a financial opinion by a company’s auditor, though the banks are trying to dismiss them as hearsay.
http://news.acts.co.za/blog/2015/06/ostrich-farmer-from-eastern-cape-shows-court-his-
mortgage-loan-is-now-in-taiwan
Justice pulls its socks up
The Department of Justice and Constitutional Development (DoJ) on Monday announced that it is finalising a Magistrates’ Court Amendment Bill “in an attempt to curb the abuses of the debt recovery procedure system”.
The announcement comes in the wake of a recent High Court ruling that declared certain sections of the Magistrates’ Court Act, which deal with emoluments attachment orders (EAO), to be unconstitutional.
The ruling ordered that magistrates must give oversight to the issuing of EAOs, incorrectly termed garnishee orders, and that EAOs must be issued in the same jurisdiction as the debtor’s place of work or residence….
http://www.moneyweb.co.za/in-depth/investigations/justice-pulls-its-socks-up/
Court Slams Credit Providers
It’s been called a victory for the poor. In 2012 business woman Wendy Appelbaum discovered that garnishee orders had been obtained against some of the workers on her wine farm. She decided to fight for their rights. Three years later the Western Cape High Court has ruled in their favour, sending shockwaves through the credit industry. Carte Blanche investigates a landmark ruling against predatory credit providers and debt collectors.
http://carteblanche.dstv.com/player/897274
Banks to be sued over repossessions
Fifty people, represented by Housing Class Action, are taking the countrys four major banks, Nedbank, Absa, Standard Bank and FNB, to court.
Johannesburg – A class-action lawsuit to force banks to stop repossessing the homes of South Africans and then selling them off at a fraction of their value is expected to be heard in the high court.
Fifty people, represented by Housing Class Action, are taking the country’s four major banks, Nedbank, Absa, Standard Bank and FNB, to court. They want either their repossessed property returned or substantial monetary compensation.
While banks often reject allegations that they care little for ordinary South Africans, the human rights group says it has records of houses being sold for R200 or R300, with the worst case being a house sold for R10.
“In most cases, properties are sold for 30 percent below market value,” the organisation said on Tuesday.
It has taken on the services of advocate Duncan Shaw, a specialist in banking law from Scotland.
“This matter may become a class action whereby the banks might have to pay back everyone in the country in the same position,” said the organisation, which is linked to the Financial Services Sector Campaign.
It said Shaw had studied the practices in other countries and found that most – if not all – the other countries require banks to sell repossessed homes at market value.
It said that despite the constitution and the country’s laws, the judiciary, sheriffs and the police acted contrary to the law in most cases.
“Whatever the law and the constitution say in defence of the people, in real, practical terms, working-class black people do not have the right to own property in certain areas in South Africa in 2015,” the organisation said.
It also plans on hauling other institutions to court which it believes have acted negligently in allowing the repossession to take place and the homes to be sold for less than their market value.
The group’s spokesman, Ian Beddowes, said they had put together a 200-page submission, but a court date had not been set.
“We’ve been up against syndicates which involve the courts, the police – people don’t want to deal with the issue of evictions. Most evictions are illegal and against the laws of South Africa,” Beddowes said.
“In South Africa, we have one of the most predatory banking systems in the world. The banks consistently do not comply with the provisions of the act that deals with repossessions.”
On Tuesday, Absa rejected the allegation that it was selling repossessed homes far below market value.
“As we have said previously, Absa does its utmost to ensure that our customers remain in their homes. With regard to sale in execution, auctions are a last resort after the bank has exhausted all possible rehabilitation solutions and resources available to the bank to recover the bad debt,” the bank said.
It said it had established a programme in 2011 to assist financially distressed home-owners to sell their properties privately before having the bank get involved.
“This programme is aimed at ensuring the highest possible price for the property is reached, as it is clearly in our and our customer’s best interest.”
FNB Home Loans head of operations Calvin Ndlovu said that if a property was purchased at a public auction, it was auctioned by the sheriff on behalf of the court.
“The bank has no authority over the auction process and therefore refers you to the sheriff’s department involved in the particular claim(s) made,” Ndlovu said.