The Tribunal Judicial da Cidade de Maputo (TJCM) has decided to proceed with the trial of Banco Comercial e de Investimentos (BCI) along with two senior employees, accused of aggravated fraud against businessman Zanil Satar. This follows the indictment by the Public Prosecutor (MP), dated August 15.
The defendants, accused of co-authoring the material act, sought to nullify the charges, claiming the crime is semi-public. However, the court dismissed their request, qualifying the accusation as aggravated fraud, noting the crime was committed with “premeditation” and “reward,” and violated “duty inherent to the position,” particularly as the parties had an “obligation not to commit or allow it to be committed.”
Zanil Satar expressed feeling “defrauded and harmed” by the bank and its employees and waits for the trial to be scheduled for late September.
The case stems from a criminal complaint submitted on May 22, 2024, by Satar against BCI and the two employees. He alleged they persuaded him to acquire Grupo Taverna in 2021, funded by HZ Holding, with a promised financial facility of 600 million meticais (€8 million) from the bank, which was not fulfilled.
The acquisition was concluded on November 30, 2021. However, the bank later informed Satar that it couldn’t provide the promised funds after he purchased Taverna, which had a debt of over 208 million meticais (€2.7 million) to BCI.
In October 2023, BCI communicated to Satar that the financial facility would not be provided, after he paid 434 million meticais (€5.8 million) from his holding to acquire Grupo Taverna, settling payments to suppliers and workers’ debts.
“Without the financing, the economic value of the plaintiff’s assets clearly diminished, later demonstrated by the closure of Mimos and Taverna businesses, leading to over 420 workers being laid off,” reads the tribunal’s record.
Furthermore, the document states that the bank’s employees knew Grupo Taverna was in a deficit situation and unable to pay its debt to BCI. “The defendants saw in Zanil and his companies the right party to settle Taverna’s debts to BCI’s advantage.”
The tribunal emphasized that the employees acted “premeditatedly and cunningly” for BCI’s “primary advantage,” recovering the debt with interest and commissions.
“The defendants always acted on behalf and interest of BCI, under constant direction (…) Their conduct had devastating impacts on HZ Holding’s financial management, unable to honor supplier commitments, settle debts, and invest due to the lack of promised credit,” it states.
“They acted freely, deliberately, and consciously, with the purpose of having the plaintiff acquire Taverna, extinguishing the debt (…) gaining illegitimate enrichment at the plaintiff’s expense, resulting in significant pecuniary loss,” concludes the document.
Zanil Satar previously requested the intervention of the central bank and the Minister of Finance on this matter.
BCI is 51% owned by Caixa Participações of Caixa Geral de Depósitos group, with 35.67% by the Portuguese bank BPI, and 10.51% directly by CGD, among others, and closed 2024 with 2,712 employees.
