Of the 140 complaints attended to by the banking industry’s ombudsman last year, between 10 and 15 percent were related to fraud, with experts cautioning that this trend indicates the growth of illegal practices in the sector.
In recent years, local banks have introduced several measures to curb fraud, including discontinuing the special clearance of cheques and introducing tighter controls on daily withdrawal limits.
The Bank of Botswana has also weighed in by placing a P500,000 limit on the value of cheques, with any amount higher requiring the use of the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications (SWIFT).
However, the introduction of advanced technology and the advent of paperless transactions has aided the growth of fraud, as seen by the banking industry’s ombudsman last year.
Banking Adjudicator, Gabriel Maotwanyane, said fraud was among the biggest challenges of 2009, with a significant proportion of complaints against banks turning out to be a result of the vice.
