Hon Chair, hon members, ladies and gentlemen, the ANC has gone through this Bill. The Minister has alluded to a number of issues, which include governance and some technical aspects. One focus is that of corporate governance leading to the proposed amendment.
The main objective of the Reserve Bank, in terms of the Constitution, is to protect the value of the currency of the Republic in the interest of balanced and sustainable economic growth in the Republic. This places a premium on the importance of good corporate governance in the way the bank is being managed.
Although the reasons for this Amendment Bill are not only about corporate governance, as was correctly alluded to by my chairperson, a lot of the issues that led to the amendment are of a governance nature. In recent years, evidence suggesting that the current Act might be open to potential abuse has come to light. This relates to the potential for private shareholders to increase their shares above the prescribed maximum of 10 000 shares per shareholder by purchasing shares through their relatives. These shares could then be used to influence the bank through acquiring the so-called "voting powers". I wonder why some people are asking why the Bill is being challenged now, as some of my colleagues from Cope have been doing.
The main aim of the Bill is to amend the SA Reserve Bank Act, Act 90 of 1989, in order to stop the bank's shareholders from circumventing the prescribed maximum of 10 000 shares per shareholder; to broaden public involvement in the nomination of directors and board representation; to provide for the establishment of a panel for the election of directors; and to clarify the power of the board and those of the Governor and the deputy. In so doing, the aim is to improve the bank's governance.
The most important amendment in relation to corporate governance is the stipulation of the limitation on the number of shares that the shareholders may hold in relation to associates and the setting of measures to prevent the circumventing of the limitation on the maximum number of shares a shareholder may hold. The Bill sets the limits for private shareholding by stipulating that "no shareholder shall hold, or hold in aggregate with his, her or its associate, more than 10 000 shares in the Bank" and sets the limits for voting rights of private shareholders by stipulating that "no shareholder ... shall either directly or indirectly exercise any vote as a shareholder in respect of the number of shares in the Bank held by him, her or it, either alone or in aggregate with his, her or its associates in excess of 10 000." The same conditions apply to companies with interlocking directorates.
The proposed amendment, as the chairperson also alluded to, will help to ensure that the bank is seen as truly fulfilling its public-interest role and acting independently from private shareholders' narrow interests. It will also assist in strengthening good corporate governance in the bank, thus improving its credibility and public confidence. Currently, this is not the case.
We also had the privilege to listen to shareholders when they presented the history of 1921 on the establishment of the bank. All in all, the ANC supports this Bill on the basis that it will now be open to the public to allow them to participate freely and not just serve the interest of the minorities. I thank you. [Applause.]