By Adelaide Changole.
South Africa’s finance regulator imposed record penalties as it sought to deter misconduct and boost trust in the industry.
The Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) levied more than R2.89 billion ($175 million) of fines in the year through March 31 compared with R119.8 million a year earlier, it said in a report Friday.
The most serious penalty was in excess of R2 billion levied against online-trading platform Banxso for deepfake advertising and misappropriating client funds. The authority also withdrew Banxso’s licenses, debarred key company officials for 30 years and forwarded the matter to prosecuting authorities to pursue a criminal case, Divisional Executive of Enforcement Gerhard van Deventer said at a briefing Friday.
The FSCA’s actions have contributed to South Africa’s hard-won exit last year from the global Financial Action Task Force’s dirty-money list in 2025, with the nation demonstrating a revamped regulatory framework and improved compliance.
The regulator concluded 678 investigations during the period, the highest number of cases finalised in a single year. It debarred 68 individuals for failing so-called fit-and-proper standards, withdrew 14 licenses and issued 140 public warnings.
The FSCA imposed a R358.75 million administrative penalty on Stehan Grobler, a former executive at collapsed global retailer Steinhoff International Holdings NV, for the publication of false statements.
“A broader market-abuse probe is still ongoing,” Van Deventer said. “In the coming year, we will eventually get to the point where we can put that case behind us.”
The regulator also imposed a R212 million fine on Medbond Group for investor harm after the company marketed fictitious investment products to investors that resulted in losses of about R194 million.
© 2026 Bloomberg.