Public warned against unlicensed investments
Wednesday, May 24, 2023 | 4080 Views |

Bank of Botswana PIC: MORERI SEJAKGOMO
A press statement from BoB and CCA advises the public that a company named Ecoplexus Solar Equipment (Pty) Ltd (Ecoplexus) is not licensed or authorised by either the Bank of Botswana or Non-Bank Financial Institutions Regulatory Authority (NBFIRA) to undertake the business of either banking or provision of financial services in Botswana. “It is, therefore, illegal for any person to solicit and/or accept deposits from members of the public disguising or masquerading as an investment scheme. Pyramid schemes and other illegal deposit-taking activities (such as ponzi schemes or fraudulent investment vehicles) are unlawful in Botswana as the nature of these operations contravenes Section 3(1) of the Banking Act (Cap. 46:04) and Section 9 (1) of the Consumer Protection Act No. 5 of 2018,”further reads the press statement.
The statement also highlights that the Banking Act, in particular, restricts transacting banking business and/or advertising for or soliciting deposits of money solely to licensed banks. “It is also a criminal offence, punishable by law, for any person to undertake or promote the aforementioned activities in Botswana, as that constitutes unfair trading practice. Section 5(1) of the Banking Act empowers the Bank to investigate a person or entity suspected to be conducting unlicensed banking business and/or illegal deposittaking activities.
For a fact, in a democratic society such as Botswana, the media plays a crucial role of being watchdog, holding the powerful to account and exposing all possible wrongdoing for the benefit of the public.There has been a nagging question about who watches the watchdog after all? Perhaps, the investigations into alleged wrongful acts implicating those supposed to be playing the watchdog role will shed more light into what has happened such that the...