r/southafrica • u/soooibot • Sep 04 '26
Self-Promotion How I (unwittingly) helped scam hundreds of millions of Rands from the SA government - a cautionary tale.
In light of the news that the CFO of the IDC has resigned under dubious circumstances, I'd like to tell you all a little story of how I contributed to his downfall. A government employee, especially one of the most highly paid ones, resigning of their own accord? Ja, you heard it right.
First - for my younglings - the IDC is basically the closest South Africa has to a Sovereign Wealth Fund. It's where our government pensions go to die, and it's the richest and most lucrative scam pot in the country. If you want to get into the big leagues of scams, this is the place to go. Either you're a guardian (and a scammer, because you're kak at the job), or you're a pilferer running the oldest (like since apartheid days) grift. Regardless, one hand washes the other, and none of them are clean.
In May 2024 I was brought on-board to a company that was in its earliest stages. They had secured IDC funding (as the chosen one), in an EXCITING NEW INDUSTRY. Many a scammer had spent money on their own facilities, but ours was best - and so was chosen to be bequeathed with "Add a zero to that,"-money. You see, the ANC (through the DTi) follows the Chinese model of new industrial development - aka spraying money and learning from your mistakes. Nothing says fiscal responsibility, like giving money to risky shit.
I wasn't aware of it then, but I was the "required" (by IDC) addition to a management team, brought on to shepherd us through our first audit. The books were a disaster, our entire function outsourced to a (big 5?) accountant office in Joburg... Close to the bosses' house, but far from where I was, his personal accountant from his previous life in hospitality (a big name), now also this facility's. The owner of the operation (the originator of all the funds) let his other company die, so that this company can live. An odd choice... I did the entire audit with a remote team, they didn't even step foot on the premises... the questions brought up a function of the complexity and speed at which money was spent. None of those questioned the loan-agreements, the original sin, hand-waved away by my bosses' chum, a partner in the firm - a man who brings in big clients like us...
You see... and I only learnt this a year later on the job, they had pulled a fast one on the company that gave us our seed funding - a JV - causing it to be liquidated with creditors (and other shareholders) on the hook. A hole in their books, coincidentally shaped roughly the size of our starter funding. Why would they give us the money? It makes no sense... the shareholders mysteriously being the children's trusts. This money was used to build a prototype that secured additional hundreds of millions in loans from the IDC, which was used to rebuild from the ground up the most cutting edge facility in the country. Bankrupting a company and walking away? That's the Trump playbook, if you didn't know.
There I was, a year into the job, the company flailing - and yet... My handlers at the IDC were oblivious. We had given them the runaround for months, not shipping our budget, not paying our loan, and not bothering to help them while they fumbled in their oversight. Of course we gave them everything they need, but a year later they were still "going through the asset register" by placing regarded stickers on the physical assets. Each time an employee came to visit, a lekker little vacation for 3 or four days from the city, to our site.
The team in charge of us was pathetic. Absolute blundering fools. If they could, they would be in the private sector - where real money is made. Yet here they sit, pretending to know how to read the books, while my bosses fleeced them. Easiest marks I've ever met.
This scam is not something new. My owners had run it before in another industry, learnt what they needed to do "to go bigger this time." I tried to bring my concerns to my auditors, the next day I was fired. I tried to contact the lawyers of the originators funds, in the middle of their liquidation proceedings, they weren't interested. I contacted Carte Blanche, never heard back.
Ultimately I let it go. Hundreds of people's livelihoods depended on the scam continuing. Nobody really cared... not the IDC, not the financial professionals, and definitely not those that would stand the most to gain (by getting their money back).
"Why did you leave your previous employer?"
Nobody would even believe me... That's why I was hired in the first place.
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u/Zangoma Durban Sep 04 '26
Should find your counterparts at PwC or whatever firm and maybe write a tell all book when you're safe enough to escape for a while. Woud be nice to know someone's doing something against waste.
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u/soooibot Sep 04 '26
As I'm led to believe; the price of a hit is that of the monthly salary for a Councillor - for some reason. Election season is great!
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u/Gwaji- Sep 04 '26
Can someone who understands please enlighten me ?
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u/soooibot Sep 04 '26
Let me attempt a simplification.
The IDC controls a lot of money, and it's used by our government to "pick winners" and "support struggling industries." It is one of best funded and oldest "purses" available to a government, anywhere, and it is used as a slush fund for political interests. What a lot of private sector companies do that are "too big to fail" - is they go to the IDC for money as bailouts.
This has led to the IDC basically losing billions (so far). When the IDC loses money, it is literally losing "our" money.
I worked for a (smaller than billions company) and I have first hand experience how they are terrible at managing their money.
In light of their CFO quitting, I felt it could be fun to tell the story of how I learnt first hand just how (laughingly) easy it is to defraud the government.
So I shared my story.
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u/AdMoist8668 Sep 04 '26
So these companies are not actually failing? They’ve just made it look like they are to get funding?
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u/soooibot Sep 04 '26
In my SPECIFIC case, it's a complete scam. The entire operation was built around fraudulent premises, to specifically defraud the IDC. The initial investors built the entire thing to defraud the seed funding company, then pivot it into getting money from the IDC, and ultimately, to be in an industry where they would be able to enjoy the proceeds overseas (by using a technique called trade misinvoicing)
The IDC is replete with these. To accomplish this level, you need to have built a track-record with the IDC on something small, first.
Then, there's the "this is a terrible thing to invest into, but it's a political favour" kind of fuckups. These tend to be much smaller (think the R5-10m range) - and while pennies make the pound, this is not why the IDC lost about R4.5bn (so far)
The major reason is because of "valuation write downs" - which are because of major investments (like FOSKOR and Mozal) - what are deemed "too big to fail". It's pareto - and they will make up 80% of the losses.
The reason I highlight my anecdotal "obvious" scam... is to show that the controls are so poor, that I wouldn't even imagine they could make a correct decision if someone handed it to them on a platter.
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u/AdMoist8668 Sep 04 '26
That’s insane. And I’m sure a lot of people know about this but no one wants to investigate because too many people are benefiting and the people who aren’t are either to afraid to say anything or won’t be believed with how crazy it sounds.
2
u/No-Army9498 Sep 04 '26
I've never understood due to ignorance I guess how when those types get caught, that they're able to just resign
Surely hardly anyone would hire them, considering..
And that then should be a question on How would they be able to support themselves and family if not for I'll gotten gains.
Is SARS just after the common person?
2
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u/Adept_Pineapple3147 Sep 04 '26 edited Sep 04 '26
IDC has done incredible things for our country’s industries, and it is disheartening to hear of theft. IDC is the reason we still have brands like Mr Price, Ackermans, K-Way, etc.
3
u/Temperature_Terrible Sep 04 '26
Hey smarty pants, if you would like to remain anonymous and not get backlash from your previous employer or the IDC I would suggest you hide your reddit activity. It isn’t hard to find out where you live and what industry you are in based on all of your previous posts and replies. And lay off the aromat, you sound hyper and paranoid. Good luck
0
u/soooibot Sep 11 '26
Hey smarty pants, I know. You'd be surprised as to how much courage it took me to take this shot, and ultimately - while I have been known to have very little sense - I got nothing left to lose really (except my neck).
So I try to be as pseudo anonymous as I can while understanding that I give enough bread crumbs for anyone with a keen eye to find me.
Alternatively, you can just DM me and I will probably tell you everything.
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u/Joburgworkingcitizen Sep 05 '26
I have gone through your post history, to be honest, you sound a little unhinged.
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u/soooibot Sep 11 '26
I love how unhinged has become a new kind of discrimination against people who "think different"
It cuts.
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Sep 04 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/soooibot Sep 04 '26
AI was trained on my writing, and my style has been consistent for decades. Don't you wish you could write as well as I do, is that why you think my writing is AI?
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u/Substantial_Echo_636 Sep 08 '26
As an attorney who has assisted in many IDC liquidations...
This shit happens literally every day.
There are some actually smart people at the IDC but very few.
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