Allied Bank rot exposed
The court application filed by the Zimbabwe Amalgamated Housing Association (Zaha) demanding its $1,4 million from the liquidated Allied Bank has exposed the rot at the institution.
This came as creditors from various sectors are not happy with the slow pace with which the liquidation process of the financial institution is proceeding.
Zaha director Dr Killer Zivhu, in his High Court application, wanted the liquidating agent Dr Cyril Madondo to be either relieved of his duties or forced by the court to reveal the assets of the bank.
In his response to Dr Zivhu, Dr Madondo said he was being wrongly cited as the liquidator of the bank, when in actual fact he was the liquidating agent.
He referred Dr Zivhu to the Deposit Protection Corporation, which he said was the actual liquidator of the bank.
Dr Madondo urged the court to dismiss the case based on wrong citation.
But the court fight has exposed the extent to which the Allied Bank shareholders and management sank the depositors’ funds.
In fact, the bank has been inundated with claims worth millions of dollars from various institutions, municipalities, parastatals, churches, schools and members of the public.
It has emerged that big firms have apparently lost their funds to the bank and these include OK Zimbabwe Limited, CBZ Bank Limited, Zimbabwe Manpower Development Fund, National Social Security Authority, First Mutual Health and TelOne.
Others are Hwange Colliery Company, Econet Wireless, Zimbabwe Family Planning Council, Zimbabwe National Roads Administration and the Minerals Marketing Corporation of Zimbabwe.
The Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Youth, Indeginisation and Economic Empowerment were cited in the court papers as also having their funds locked in the bank.
Dr Madondo said in his response to Dr Zivhu’s court application that at least $31 388 855 needed to be recovered from the bank to ensure its successful liquidation.
He said what needed to be recovered included: “value of assets amounting to US$16 790 000 to be recovered from Trebo and Khays (Private) Limited. However, the matter is before the High Court under case No. HC8287 /15.
“Value of term deposits and demand deposits amounting to US$22 242 408, which cannot be accounted for by the directors of the bank.
“Value of loan book with an exposure to be recovered from the former directors of the bank amounting to US$1 860 659, 17.”
The other funds that need to be recovered are US$1 139 886,50 RTGS, which is held at the US Department of Treasury – Office of Foreign Asset Control and US$150 000 value of 15 vehicles in possession of the former executive management of the bank.
“With respect, the recovery of the remaining assets as stated above is subject to court proceedings,” said Dr Madondo.
“Therefore, the final Liquidation and Distribution Account being sought by the Applicant (Dr Zivhu) will only be prepared after the conclusion of the matters pending in the court. Nothing less will suffice.”
Allied Bank, whose majority shares are owned by a vehicle linked to Economic Planning and Investment Promotion Minister Obert Mpofu, had its licence cancelled by the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe in January 2015 after it was found to be in an unsafe financial position. The Herald
