JOHANNESBURG - Embattled audit firm KPMG has suspended Sipho Malaba, the head of financial services auditing, which is one of their biggest units.
Malaba's appointment was announced in October last year, along with their new executive team.
KPMG has tried to restore public trust and rebuild is tarnished image after a number of scandals last year.
The company has gone to great lengths to distance itself after being so closely linked to the Gupta family and a number of businesses.
KPMG has also faced significant backlash over its so-called rogue unit report at the SA Revenue Service.
Malaba was tasked to lead the firm's strategic projects as the company and was moved into a new leadership position after the scandals of 2017.
Malaba was tasked with being the lead independent audit partner on VBS Mutual Bank, which has now been placed under curatorship.
The SA Reserve Bank (SARB) said in a report that R900 million of the bank’s deposits of R2.9 billion cannot be effectively confirmed.
The shocking fact is that VBS only has liquid assets of R24 million, according to the report.
VBS is accused manipulating its own financial information.
Malaba specifically signed off the independent auditor's report on VBS's accounts until July 2017, according to Business Insider.
SARB said on Wednesday that VBS experienced liquidity issues for the 18 months, and this was basically during KPMG’s watch.
Sarb deputy governor Kuben Naidoo said in an affidavit that VBS could not account for nearly R1 billion deposited with the bank.
Naidoo also accused VBS of paying brokerage commissions to a number of entities to try and attract deposits, mainly from municipalities.
Also read: VBS Mutual Bank’s rot exposed