David Van Niekerk and his associates played a major behind-the-scenes role in siphoning millions of Pula in investment funds out of the country through an elaborate scheme. This scheme first involved setting up offshore companies in African markets, then using local companies to solicit funds from the public through an investment company, and finally channeling the investment into the offshore firms they controlled.
Take, for example, Zelda Viljoen, Van Niekerk’s confidant. She is one of the masterminds behind a complex, multi-faceted process that apparently involved a series of further transactions. Her fingerprints are all over Van Niekerk’s operations, including Ecsponent, Blue Financial Services, MyBucks, and, more recently, Status Capital Eswatini, where approximately E140 million in depositors’ funds allegedly disappeared.
Van Niekerk is currently involved in an ongoing court case in Eswatini, accused of fleecing investors of millions of rands in investment funds. He denies the accusations.
Viljoen is also a key executive at Numeral Group, one of Van Niekerk’s new establishments. According to information revealed in the ongoing court cases in Eswatini, she was allegedly the primary person responsible for the missing funds.
She has been described as the steadfast financial engineer within Van Niekerk’s inner circle for over two decades. Viljoen held exclusive rights over Status Capital’s investments and allegedly orchestrated transactions that led to Status Capital’s downfall. Prior to her role at Status Capital, she was reportedly instrumental in the collapse of Blue Financial Services Group, which left a financial trail of destruction exceeding E1 billion across the SADC region.
To unravel the destruction she allegedly caused at Status Capital in Eswatini, court documents show that, from 2019 until May 2021, Viljoen was involved in disbursing funds from Status Capital Building Society’s bank account. It was common knowledge that the funds were directed to various companies linked to her, Van Niekerk, and Mr. Scholtz.
In fact, available forensic reports detail more than 300 transactions facilitated by an alleged embezzlement scheme, wherein Viljoen was the sole operator of the bank accounts, both capturing and approving transactions alone, channeling approximately E140 million into entities controlled by Van Niekerk.
Status Capital Building Society is seeking to recover approximately E135 million that was allegedly disbursed unlawfully by Viljoen to various companies, even before the Debenture and Cession Agreements were signed.
Van Niekerk and his associates strategically set up Status Capital Building Society in Eswatini. Its objective was to raise funds through the issuing of shares and accepting deposits from the public to facilitate the acquisition of immovable property by other members of the public through long-term loans, under the Building Societies Act (BSA Act). Essentially, Status Capital invited the public to invest their hard-earned money and retirement savings in exchange for relatively high interest rates on their investments.
Investors were assured that mortgage bonds would secure their investments, as Status Capital Building Society was established for the purpose of financing the acquisition of immovable property through long-term loans, with regulation from the Financial Sector Regulatory Authority (FSRA).
After establishing Status Capital Building Society, a web of companies was set up, which court documents state were created for the purpose of defrauding Status Capital Building Society. Among these companies were Aluma Capital (Pty) Ltd, Claymore Procurement Solutions (Pty) Ltd, and Fintegrate (Pty) Ltd—all South African-based companies that also operated from the Fintech Campus in Pretoria. Viljoen allegedly transferred funds to these companies at Van Niekerk’s instruction.
Status Asset Management (Pty) Ltd (SAM), cited as the respondent in this application for liquidation, is a fintech company that operates from the Fintech Campus in Pretoria. Other companies include Swaziland Debt Factoring Firm (Pty) Ltd, which is registered in Swaziland but operates through the shared services platform from Pretoria. These companies provide human resources, legal, and IT services for SDFF in South Africa. According to court filings, investment decisions for these companies were made in Pretoria. Other companies such as Status Management Services (Pty) Ltd and Smart People Financial Services (Pty) Ltd also operate from Pretoria.
It was revealed that, since the inception of Status Capital Building Society, Van Niekerk conducted all its services through Status Management Services (SMS) in Pretoria at the Fintech Campus. At all relevant times, documents filed at the South African High Court state that Status Capital Building Society’s branches in Eswatini were only used as collection points by Van Niekerk and his associates, Soonius and Viljoen, via SMS.
Court documents show that Status Capital Building Society was at one point concerned that funds were not being repaid and informed Viljoen that it had come to the Society’s attention that Ecsponent, with which they were associated, was under investigation for unlawful conduct.
On 12 July 2022, Status Capital Building Society wrote to the companies, advising them that the Society’s financial information had not been shared despite several attempts. The Building Society also noted that its functions were executed by SMS in Pretoria. Directors of SMS included Van Niekerk, Mr. Scholtz, and Edwin Soonius, based in South Africa. The Society sought answers regarding investments it had made with the companies to answer to its investors.
The letter stated: “Provide the required documents as stated above and ensure that all companies directly linked to yourself, and to which you (despite being conflicted) authorised and disbursed all funds, repay all amounts due in FULL.”
By that time, court documents indicate it was clear that Status Capital Building Society had been the victim of a fraudulent scheme orchestrated by Van Niekerk, Soonius, Viljoen, Scholtz, and Prinsloo, operating from the Fintech Campus in Pretoria.
The companies (SDFF, SAM, SMS, Fintegrate, and Claymore) appear to have been established to defraud Status Capital Building Society and funnel its funds.
SAM solicited funds from the Building Society and, by extension, innocent members of the public under false pretenses, claiming the funds would be invested. In reality, Van Niekerk and his associates were using the funds for personal gain.
SAM was registered on 24 July 2019, and a couple of months later, on 12 October 2019, the Building Society concluded a Debenture Agreement with SAM. On 1 July 2020, the Society and SAM also signed a Cession Agreement, in which it was agreed that SAM would put up certain securities.
Status Capital Building Society is demanding over E100 million taken from it illegally through the web of companies operating from the Fintech Campus in Pretoria.
According to court documents, on 18 June 2021, the Financial Sector Regulatory Authority (FSRA) of Eswatini directed that no further transactions could be conducted through Status Capital Building Society’s bank account and that no further investments should be made without written approval from the FSRA. The Society was also instructed to recall and disinvest all funds invested under the Debenture Agreement with SDFF, SAM, Fintegrate, Claymore, and other related companies.
Court documents detail that such investments were unlawful and violated the Building Societies Act and the FSRA.
On 20 June 2022, Status Capital Building Society sent a letter of demand to the companies operating from the Fintech Campus in Pretoria. The letter was addressed to Viljoen, as she was considered one of the major players in running the affairs of these companies.
The Status Capital case is still before the courts. Fresh information emerged this week that the PAC in Eswatini has ordered Van Niekerk to return the principal amount of funds invested through Ecsponent.
This is contained in a report by the Parliament Select Committee appointed by the House of Assembly to analyse the Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr INC (CDH) Forensic Report on the lost millions through the Ecsponent investment scheme. The report was tabled by the committee’s Chairperson, Deputy Speaker Madala Mhlanga, on Monday in Parliament.
In a sworn affidavit before the court, Lindiwe Vilakazi, one of the founding members of Ecsponent Eswatini, pointed out that after registering the company, Van Niekerk, who was introduced locally, never appeared in any company documents at the Registrar of Companies, yet he was the one calling the shots behind the scenes with one Terrance Gregory, who was said to be the CEO of Ecsponent SA.
While the Status Capital matter in Eswatini remains unresolved, Van Niekerk has resurfaced through a company called Numeral Group. Interestingly, Numeral Group was previously known as GoLife, a healthcare group that borrowed funds from Ecsponent Limited and failed to repay them. This exposure ended up being settled with a 6.8 percent shareholding in GoLife.
But Van Niekerk is not alone. Viljoen, who seems to be the ‘cat’s paw’ in Van Niekerk’s operations, reappears as a key executive, despite being accused of conducting a series of fraudulent transactions for Van Niekerk. While Van Niekerk operated behind the scenes at Ecsponent, he now takes center stage at Numeral as the Group CEO and founder.
Zelda Viljoen, previously with Ecsponent Capital and heavily implicated in the improper transactions at Status Capital Eswatini, was a key operator behind the scenes during the Ecsponent Limited era and is now listed as an executive at Numeral. She is part of Van Niekerk’s executive team, which includes the same individuals who ran Ecsponent, Blue, and MyBucks into the ground.
Neville Graham, formerly with MyBucks, serves as the Group Chief Operating Officer at Numeral. Additionally, Lenki Jeffrey Ratsaka, who was Van Niekerk’s driver at Ecsponent and Blue Financial Services, has now resurfaced as an executive of Aluma Capital, which is said to be a subsidiary of Numeral Group.
Numeral Group’s Links to Ecsponent through Van Niekerk’s Support Network
Despite Numeral being the front company for Van Niekerk’s operations, the fallout from the collapse of Blue Financial Services, MyBucks, and the initial fraudulent transactions continue to haunt him. Van Niekerk’s track record includes allegations of skimming funds from investors. These include $60 million raised through a complicated network of companies operating across Africa.
It is clear that Van Niekerk’s return to the financial scene with Numeral Group is more than just a comeback: it’s an attempt to reshape his tarnished image, using a different corporate mask while continuing to operate in the same predatory way.
Van Niekerk’s leadership style remains similar to that of his past endeavors. His operations depend on careful public relations tactics, strategic connections, and complex corporate structures, leaving victims in the wake of his operations with little recourse.
The financial impact of his companies’ previous mismanagement is still being dealt with by many.
