Reserve Bank secures court order to attach Markus Jooste’s assets

The South African Reserve Bank (Sarb) confirmed on Tuesday evening that it has secured a court order to attach assets linked to disgraced former Steinhoff CEO Markus Jooste.

This is related to his involvement in the accounting scandal that rocked the one-time retail giant. The move represents the first major public-sector-led court action in SA linked to Jooste and his role as the top the executive at Steinhoff when the fraud first came to light a few years back.

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“[The] Western Cape High Court has granted the South African Reserve Bank an ex parte order to attach the assets linked to former Steinhoff CEO Mark[us] Jooste. The Sarb executed the order today, 18 October 2022,” the central bank said in a brief post on Twitter, with a link to the court order.

A cursory glance at the order reveals that Jooste’s Lanzerac house and wine farm in Stellenbosch and another house in Hermanus in the Western Cape have been seized, together with several luxury and commercial vehicles, artworks, jewellery and other assets.

The accounting scandal at Steinhoff brought the group to its knees, but it averted a total collapse after securing settlement agreements with several parties that initiated court action.

Listen to Moneyweb editor Ryk van Niekerk speaking to the director as well as author of Steinheist, which is being made into a documentary (or read the transcript):