The office of the South African president rejected a media report claiming that Cyril Ramaphosa knew of the looting at VBS Mutual Bank but failed to take any action, saying the allegation was "baseless and unsubstantiated," Reuters reported.

The City Press report said a VBS shareholder who acted as a whistleblower from 2016 onward had told Ramaphosa, the then-deputy president, of the activities at the bank.

Around 1.9 billion South African rand was illegally drained out of the bank, according to Reuters.

As of Oct. 15, US$1 was equivalent to 14.35 South African rand.