Chancellor House (company)
Type | Investment Holding Company |
---|---|
Founded | March, 2003 |
Headquarters | 46B Wierda Road West, Wierda Valley, Sandton, Johannesburg, South Africa |
Area served | South Africa |
Key people | Khanyisile Kweyama (Chairperson)[1] Mogopodi Mokoena (CEO)[2] |
Website | https://www.chh.co.za/ |
Chancellor House is a South African holding company managing investments in the mining, engineering, energy and information technology sectors.[3][4] It is named after Chancellor House, the building where the law firm of Nelson Mandela and Oliver Tambo was located.
After initially being exposed as a surreptitious funding front for the African National Congress (ANC) it was subsequently acknowledged as an in-house investment firm for the party.[5] It is best known for the controversy surrounding the award to it of lucrative black economic empowerment and parastatal contracts.
History[]
The existence of the company was first revealed to the public in 2006. A Mail & Guardian newspaper article alleged that the company had been formed in 2003 on the initiative of Mendi Msimang, then treasurer-general of the ANC, with the explicit intention of raising funds for the party.[6]
Prior to the newspaper report the company was virtually unknown; Kgalema Motlanthe, then secretary general of the party, reportedly first learned of it when contacted by the newspaper for comment.[7]
In September 2021, the company itself admitted that it served as a funding vehicle for the ANC.[8]
On 10 November 2021, Mamatho Netsianda and Zwelibanzi Nzama, a senior executive, were implicated in a politically-connected real estate development project dating back to 2008. Land above Sandton station had been transferred by the City of Johannesburg, but payment had never been received.[9]
Eskom contract[]
In November 2007 parastatal electricity supplier Eskom awarded the biggest single contract in its history, for six steam generators worth R20 billion, to a consortium including . At the time of the award that company was 25% owned by Chancellor House.[10]
In February 2008 the ANC said it would appoint advisers with a view to transparently exiting the transaction due to governance issues.[11] In March 2008 the office of the Public Protector said an investigation into the transaction was underway.[12]
Following charges under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act by the Securities and Exchange Commission, Hitachi agreed to a $19 million settlement in September 2015.[13] These perceptions of poor accountability, transparency and management associated with the ANC also attracted criticism from the Democratic Alliance, an opposition party.[14]
References[]
- ^ "Board Members". Chancellor House. Retrieved 5 January 2022.
- ^ "Executive Management". Chancellor House. Retrieved 5 January 2022.
- ^ Robinson, Vicki; Brmmer, Stefaans (10 November 2006). "The ANC's new funding front". Mail & Guardian. Retrieved 28 October 2021.
- ^ Staff Writer (10 November 2006). "Other Chancellor House investments". Mail & Guardian. Retrieved 28 October 2021.
- ^ Brmmer, Stefaans (26 January 2007). "ANC admits it used BEE funding front". Mail & Guardian. Retrieved 28 October 2021.
- ^ Robinson, Vicki; Brmmer, Stefaans (10 November 2006). "The ANC's new funding front". Mail & Guardian. Retrieved 28 October 2021.
- ^ Paton, Carol (19 January 2007). "Financing the ANC: Untold Millions". Financial Mail. Archived from the original on 11 May 2011. Retrieved 28 October 2021.
- ^ Cowan, Kyle (11 September 2021). "'Yes, we fund the ANC' says Chancellor House after more than a decade of denials of ANC influence on major deals". News24. Retrieved 28 October 2021.
- ^ Comrie, Susan (10 November 2021). "The R280m Joburg 'crime scene': Strategic friends (part two)". amaBhungane. Retrieved 10 November 2021.
- ^ Creamer, Terence (7 December 2007). "Hitachi Power Africa assures relationship with ANC-linked company is above board". Engineering News. Retrieved 28 October 2021.
- ^ "Chancellor House to exit Eskom deal". IOL. 21 February 2008. Retrieved 28 October 2021.
- ^ Staff Reporter (10 March 2008). "Public Protector eyes Eskom-Chancellor House issue". Mail & Guardian. Retrieved 28 October 2021.
- ^ "SEC Charges Hitachi With FCPA Violations". U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. 28 September 2015. Retrieved 28 October 2021.
- ^ Nicholson, Greg (8 October 2015). "Maimane takes corruption fight to Chancellor House". Daily Maverick. Retrieved 28 October 2021.
- Companies based in Johannesburg
- Investment management companies of South Africa
- African National Congress