Capitec Founder Clarifies Political Donations Amid ANCYL's Call to Boycott Bank Over DA Funding

Capitec Founder Clarifies Political Donations Amid ANCYL's Call to Boycott Bank Over DA Funding

  • The ANC Youth League is urging South Africans to boycott Capitec for allegedly donating to the opposition party, the Democratic Alliance
  • ANCYL president Collen Malatji accused the bank of being anti-black for only handing money to the official opposition
  • Capitec founder Michiel Le Roux has denied allegations that he uses the bank's money to fund the DA

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JOHANNESBURG - The African National Congress Youth League (ANCYL) is calling for South Africans to boycott Capitec for donating to the opposition party, the Democratic Alliance.

Collage Image of ANCYL president Collen Malatji and customers waiting in line to use an automatic teller machine (ATM) at a Capitec Bank
ANCYL president Collen Malatji wants South Africans to stop banking with Capitec Bank. Images: @Collen_Malatji3/X & Guillem Sartorio/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Source: Getty Images

ANCYL accuses Capitec of being anti-black

The ANCYL president, Collen Malatji, slammed the bank and its founder, billionaire Michiel Le Roux, for using black people's money and using it to fund the DA.

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Malatji claimed on social media that banking with Capitec is the same as voting for the DA and anti-blackness.

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Speaking at the SundayWorld Engage event on Tuesday, 19 September, Malatji called on South Africans to boycott the bank for only donating to the Democratic Alliance and no other party.

"I am going to make it clear to all South Africans who are progressive must not bank with Capitec because Capitec is anti-BEE, Capitec is ant-affirmative action and Capitec is anti-blacks," said Malatji.

Malatji argued that by banking with Capitec, black people are bankrolling a political party against "transformative growth".

Capitec founder Michiel Le Roux denies ANCYL accusations

However, the Capitec founder, Michiel Le Roux, has cleared the air about his donations to the DA. Le Roux told SundayWorld newspaper that he has donated to the Democratic Alliance through his other companies and not through Capitec.

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Le Roux said his companies, Fynbos Ekweteit and Fynbos Kapital, have donated a total sum of R15 million. He admitted that he is open to donating to other parties that hold and share the same values as he does.

Capitec spokesperson Brownyn Pretorius has also denied the ANCYL's president's claims about the bank and its founder, saying the bank does not donate money to political parties.

South Africans weigh in on ANCYL call to boycott Capitec

@bozzie_t said:

"They [ANCYL] must start by telling their leader to stop being in bed with these same capitalists, then we can take them seriously."

@SimonRossouw said:

"Capitec isn't taking anything, blacks gladly give them money. Nobody put a gun to the heads of black South Africans and forced them to open Capitec accounts. How's the black banking system coming along? Who destroyed VBS again? But yeah, blame the white man."

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@Nhlekza9808 said:

"What business owners do with profits from their business is nobody's business. At least he uses his own money and not taxpayers' money, which I doubt can be said about this fellow @Collen_Malatji3."

@pg_mthi said:

"1. Capitec does not “take” money from anyone. It provides a service that people pay for at low rates. 2. The DA has voted for BEE and EE in the past. Its recent reviews say the legislation has been used to enrich a few BEE tycoons. There are better ways to ensure redress."

@AdvdaliB commented:

"Coalitions with the same anti-black party might also be rejected."

Gordhan demands public apology from ANCYL President Collen Malatji

Briefly News previously reported that Minister of Public Enterprises Pravin Gordhan is at odds with newly elected ANC Youth League President Collen Malatji following a recent interview.

In an interview with The Citizen, Malatji stated that Gordhan must be stopped before he sells the country. The ANCYL president said the minister would soon sell all state-owned enterprises and South Africans.

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Source: Briefly News

Authors:
Lebogang Mashego avatar

Lebogang Mashego (Current Affairs HOD) Lebogang Mashego runs the Current Affairs desk. She joined the Briefly News team in 2021. She has 6 years of experience in the journalism field. Her journalism career started while studying at Rhodes University, where she worked for the Oppidan Press for 3 years. She worked as a lifestyle writer and editor at W24 and Opera News. She graduated with a BA degree majoring in Journalism and Media Studies in 2017. She's a recipient of the INMA Elevate Scholarship. Email: lebogang.mashego@briefly.co.za