Saambou's former director for personal banking, Charles Edwards and Gerhardus De Clercq, who was the general manager of Saambou Bank's group finance and later of strategic alliances, on Monday pleaded not guilty to 10 charges of fraud, one of theft and two of contravening the Companies Act, involving about R640-million.
Edwards and De Clercq's co-accused, former chief executive director of Saambou Bank and Saambou Holdings, Johan Myburgh, died of cancer in December last year.
Saambou was South Africa's seventh largest bank before its collapse in 2002 after investors lost confidence and withdrew more than R1-billion of their savings.
The men are accused of preventing information on the failing financial status of Saambou Bank and Saambou Holdings being disclosed to shareholders, depositors and investors.
The State will seek to prove that the accused had conducted the business of Saambou Bank in a reckless manner, that they concealed or made false entries in the books, financial records and financial statements of Saambou Bank and Saambou Holdings and that they gave financial assistance in respect of the purchase of shares of Saambou Bank in contravention of the provisions of the Companies Act.
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