Chancellor House is a South African holding company managing investments in the

mining Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth, usually from an ore body, lode, vein, seam, reef, or placer deposit. The exploitation of these deposits for raw material is based on the economic via ...

engineering Engineering is the use of scientific method, scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad rang ...

energy In physics, energy (from Ancient Greek: ἐνέργεια, ''enérgeia'', “activity”) is the quantitative property that is transferred to a body or to a physical system, recognizable in the performance of work and in the form of heat a ...

and

information technology Information technology (IT) is the use of computers to create, process, store, retrieve, and exchange all kinds of data . and information. IT forms part of information and communications technology (ICT). An information technology system (I ...

sectors. It is named after Chancellor House, the building where the law firm of

Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (; ; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist who served as the President of South Africa, first president of South Africa from 1994 to 1 ...

and

Oliver Tambo Oliver Reginald Kaizana Tambo (27 October 191724 April 1993) was a South African anti-apartheid politician and revolutionary who served as President of the African National Congress (ANC) from 1967 to 1991. Biography Higher education Oliv ...

was located. After initially being exposed as a surreptitious funding front for the

African National Congress The African National Congress (ANC) is a Social democracy, social-democratic political party in Republic of South Africa, South Africa. A liberation movement known for its opposition to apartheid, it has governed the country since 1994, when ...

(ANC) it was subsequently acknowledged as an in-house investment firm for the party. It is best known for the controversy surrounding the award to it of lucrative

black economic empowerment Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) is a policy of the South African government which aims to facilitate broader participation in the economy by black people. A form of affirmative action, it is intended especially to redress the inequalities creat ...

and

parastatal A state-owned enterprise (SOE) is a government entity which is established or nationalised by the ''national government'' or ''provincial government'' by an executive order or an act of legislation in order to earn profit for the government ...

contracts.

History

The existence of the company was first revealed to the public in 2006. A ''

Mail & Guardian The ''Mail & Guardian'' is a South African weekly newspaper and website, published by M&G Media in Johannesburg, South Africa. It focuses on political analysis, investigative reporting, Southern African news, local arts, music and popular cultu ...

'' newspaper article alleged that the company had been formed in 2003 on the initiative of

Mendi Msimang Mendi Msimang (8 December 1928 – 3 December 2018) was the treasurer of the African National Congress from 1997 until 2012.Calland, Richard (2006) ''Anatomy of South Africa: Who Holds the Power Today?'', Zebra Press, , p. 288 Biography From 199 ...

, then treasurer-general of the ANC, with the explicit intention of raising funds for the party. Prior to the newspaper report the company was virtually unknown; Kgalema Motlanthe, then secretary general of the party, reportedly first learned of it when contacted by the newspaper for comment. In September 2021, the company itself admitted that it served as a funding vehicle for the ANC. On 10 November 2021, Mamatho Netsianda and Zwelibanzi Nzama, a senior executive, were implicated in a politically-connected real estate development project dating back to 2008. Land above Sandton station had been transferred by the City of Johannesburg, but payment had never been received.

Eskom contract

In November 2007 parastatal electricity supplier

Eskom Eskom Hld SOC Ltd or Eskom is a South African electricity public utility. It was established in 1923 as the Electricity Supply Commission (ESCOM) and was also known by its Afrikaans name Elektrisiteitsvoorsieningskommissie (EVKOM). Eskom repre ...

awarded the biggest single contract in its history, for six steam generators worth R20 billion, to a consortium including Hitachi Power Africa. At the time of the award that company was 25% owned by Chancellor House. In February 2008 the ANC said it would appoint advisers with a view to transparently exiting the transaction due to governance issues. In March 2008 the office of the

Public Protector The Public Protector in South Africa is one of six independent state institutions set up by the country's Constitution to support and defend democracy. According to Section 181 of the Constitution: * These institutions are independent, and subje ...

said an investigation into the transaction was underway. Following charges under the

Foreign Corrupt Practices Act The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 (FCPA) (, ''et seq.'') is a United States federal law that prohibits U.S. citizens and entities from bribing foreign government officials to benefit their business interests. The FCPA is applicable world ...

by the

Securities and Exchange Commission The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government, created in the aftermath of the Wall Street Crash of 1929. The primary purpose of the SEC is to enforce the law against market ...

Hitachi () is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate corporation headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. It is the parent company of the Hitachi Group (''Hitachi Gurūpu'') and had formed part of the Ni ...

agreed to a $19 million settlement in September 2015. These perceptions of poor accountability, transparency and management associated with the ANC also attracted criticism from the Democratic Alliance, an opposition party.

References

{{Political history of South Africa Companies based in Johannesburg Investment management companies of South Africa African National Congress