South Africa’s Ramaphosa orders inquiry at $142 billion state pension fund

South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa on Wednesday appointed a judicial inquiry into the 2 trillion rand ($142 billion) state pension fund, a government gazette said, following corruption allegations.

The PIC is Africa’s biggest pension fund and the biggest investor in South Africa’s economy holding a large volume of bonds issued by government and state-owned firms.

The gazette notice said it will investigate “persistent and continued negative reports about alleged improprieties regarding investments” by the Public Investment Corporation (PIC), which manages assets on behalf of the government employees.

Ramaphosa said the inquiry should issue a final report by latest April next year.

In May, opposition parties called for an investigation into the pension fund’s chief executive Dan Matjila, accusing him of misuse of funds and careless investment decisions.

Matjila has denied the allegations and was also backed by the Treasury, which oversees the PIC.

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