Coenie Botha, a figure previously linked to the Uhuru Tribe scheme, appeared in Windhoek Magistrate's Court yesterday on fraud charges. The Bank of Namibia (BoN) announced the arrest and charges following an investigation into CBI Exchange Namibia. Botha is accused of conducting banking operations without a license.

The Bank of Namibia's investigation found that CBI Exchange Namibia and Coenraad Barend Nolte Botha were not authorized to conduct banking business. Specifically, they are suspected of receiving deposits from the public without the necessary licensing. This alleged activity constitutes a violation of section 6 of the Banking Institutions Act. The BoN has since referred the matter to the Namibian Police for further investigation.

Botha’s alleged financial misconduct stretches back to 2018 with the Uhuru Tribe scheme. That operation collapsed in November 2020. Following Uhuru Tribe's demise, Botha reportedly relaunched operations as CBI Global, also known as CBI Exchange. CBI Global experienced multiple collapses throughout 2021. By March 2022, three distinct CBI Global failures had been documented.

The Bank of Namibia initiated action against Botha in March 2022, preemptively freezing bank accounts associated with CBI Global. South Africa's Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) issued a securities fraud warning concerning CBI Global in April 2022. New Era reports that CBI Global alone defrauded investors of N$160 million, approximately $8.5 million USD. It remains unclear if this figure includes funds lost through the earlier Uhuru Tribe scheme.

Afrika Jantjies, identified as Botha’s attorney and an accomplice in CBI Global, was also arrested on March 14, 2024. The Bank of Namibia urges anyone affected by Botha’s alleged activities to contact the Namibian Police. The Namibian Police website was reportedly down at the time of this report, and no further information was available on their social media channels.