FOR THE RECORD: Banking Giants 'Rigged' South Africa's Currency

Anti-apartheid icon Nelson Mandela's image is on some notes. BBC

Seventeen banks have been accused of rigging the price of South Africa’s currency, the rand.

President Jacob Zuma is pushing for reforms in the banking sector. Getty Images

BBC Africa Live report continues:

The country’s Competition Commission has called for big fines against the banking giants, which include HSBC and Barclays, after making a long list of serious and extensive allegations against them. 

The commission accused the banks’ foreign currency traders of conspiring to fix the price of the rand; sometimes using online chat rooms to coordinate fictitious bids and offers in order to sway the market.

A two year investigation concluded there was “widespread collusion” and recommended that the banks be fined 10% of their annual turnovers in South Africa.

The 17 banks are now likely to face prosecution at South Africa’s Competition Tribunal.

The Bank of America, Barclays, JP Morgan and HSBC are among those implicated in activities that the commission alleges have been going on since at least 2007. 

Several banks have already said they will cooperate with the authorities.

In recent years, South Africa has successfully prosecuted and fined local construction companies and bakeries for price fixing.

ANC Demands Tough Action Against Banks

South Africa's governing African National Congress (ANC) says harsh penalties should be imposed on banks operating in the country, should they be found guilty of manipulating the foreign exchange markets. 

The statement came after South Africa's competition watchdog referred its investigation into the foreign exchange dealings of 17 banks to the prosecuting authorities. 

The ANC says the latest developments expose the "ethical crisis in the South African banking sector". 

The opposition Economic Freedom Fighters is calling for the banks to have their operating licences immediately revoked. 

However, another opposition party, the Democratic Alliance, says the timing of the case is suspicious, given that in his State of the Nation address last week, President Jacob Zuma said the competition authorities would be one of the tools used to drive radical economic transformation forward.

Separately, Mr Zuma also accused the country's four big banks of controlling South Africa's economy. If found guilty, the Competition Commission will push for a fine of 10% of the bank's turnovers.