Matemera Charged Over Alleged $340 Million Externalisation While at BancABC

NSSA acting general manager Hashmon Matemera has been charged with allegedly helping externalise US$340 million while managing BancABC (image source)

HARARE — National Social Security Authority (NSSA) acting general manager Hashmon Matemera has appeared in the Harare Magistrates’ Court facing charges of facilitating the externalisation of about US$340 million during his tenure as managing director of BancABC, court sources and prosecution papers reveal.

Matemera (52) stood before provincial magistrate Vakai Douglas Chikwekwe, who remanded the matter and set the next hearing for June 15. The accused was not asked to plead and was granted bail of US$10 000 under strict conditions. As part of the bail terms, he must surrender his passport, reside at his declared address, report weekly to the police, and provide surety worth US$250 000 to the clerk of court.

The State alleges that Matemera, while heading BancABC three years ago, abetted the unauthorised transfer of US$332,980,000 belonging to Jinan Mining (Pvt) Ltd to multiple foreign destinations including Botswana, Zambia, Sierra Leone, Mozambique, the DRC, Dubai, and China. The alleged transfers occurred between April 2013 and April 2014, involving a chain of movements that obscured the funds’ final destinations.

According to court documents, Jinan Mining was formed in November 2011 as a joint venture between Marange Resources and Anhui Foreign Economic Construction Company (AFECC) of China. Jinan opened a BancABC transitory account at the Mt Pleasant branch in January 2012, which received over US$628 million in investment funds from AFECC up to December 2013.

Prosecutors allege Matemera authorised the opening of the account without proper documentation and later collaborated with Bai Xiangqian, Qingde Jiang, and Bei Bei Ma—who remain at large—to move millions out of Zimbabwe through BancABC Botswana. Investigations found the funds were not used in Botswana as declared but were dispersed across several countries through complex banking transactions.

Detailed charge sheets show that US$290.5 million went to five banks in China, US$11.2 million to the DRC, US$4.3 million to Zambia, US$676,800 to Sierra Leone, and US$1.3 million to Dubai, among other destinations. Investigators also noted that Jinan had no registered operations in Botswana, undermining claims that the transfers were legitimate business investments.

State prosecutor Sebastian Mutizirwa is leading the case, and police have indicated that further arrests are likely as investigations continue into the cross-border financial network. Matemera and his legal representatives declined to comment in court.