- The Financial Sector Conduct Authority has handed down a R4.1 million administrative penalty to Johannes Lodewicus Du Plessis and banned him from the industry for 25 years.
- Following its investigation, the regulator found that Du Plessis had traded clients’ funds using the Sanlam Private Wealth iTrade platform and issued investment documents that falsely claimed he was an appointed representative of the company.
- This action comes after a public warning in which Du Plessis and JLD Investments CC were said to have offered returns of up to 36% a year. The curatorship managing the business is now almost complete.
The Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) has fined Johannes Lodewicus Du Plessis R4.1 million and barred him from providing financial services for 25 years.
The decision comes after the regulator found that he traded clients’ investment funds without the necessary authorisation and misrepresented his relationship with Sanlam Private Wealth.
In a statement on Monday, 26 October 2026, the FSCA said its investigation was finished. The findings revealed Du Plessis provided discretionary intermediary services involving listed shares, even though he did not have the required authorisation, and supplied investigators with false and misleading information.
This regulatory action follows a warning issued by the FSCA in November 2024 about Du Plessis and his company, JLD Investments CC.
Clients’ funds traded without authorisation
Between June 2022 and November 2025, Du Plessis collected money from clients and traded it on their behalf in equities through the Sanlam Private Wealth (SPW) iTrade trading platform.
He also prepared and sent out welcome letters and investment statements made to look as if they came from Sanlam Private Wealth. These documents were on the company’s official letterhead and included its financial services provider (FSP) number.
According to the FSCA, these documents gave the false impression that Du Plessis was an appointed representative of Sanlam Private Wealth, even though he was not authorised to act for the company. The FSCA also found that Du Plessis had provided investigators with false and misleading information during their investigation.
Earlier warning over promised investment returns
On 18 November 2024, the FSCA issued a public warning saying it had received reports that Du Plessis, through JLD Investments CC, was offering financial services and promising members of the public returns of up to 36% per annum.
The regulator also said Du Plessis was allegedly pretending to be a representative or broker for Sanlam Private Wealth. The company confirmed to the FSCA that he was not authorised to act on its behalf. At the time, the FSCA made it clear that neither Du Plessis nor JLD Investments was an authorised financial services provider.
The regulator said its investigation was still ongoing and that it had not yet reached any conclusions on the allegations. The warning was issued to alert the public to the risks of accepting financial advice or investment offers from unauthorised providers. The investigation has now concluded, leading to the penalty and ban announced on 26 October 2026.
Financial sector laws contravened
The FSCA found that Du Plessis had seriously violated several financial sector laws. These include Section 7(1)(a) of the Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services Act 37 of 2002, section 139 of the Financial Sector Regulation Act 9 of 2017, Section 111(4) of the Financial Sector Regulation Act, section 8(9)(b) of the FAIS Act and regulation 3(b) of the FAIS Regulations.
He was also found to have breached Section 8A(a) of the FAIS Act, together with Section 8(1)(a) of the Determination of Fit and Proper Requirements for Financial Services Providers, 2017. The FSCA imposed an administrative penalty of R4.1 million and debarred Du Plessis for 25 years.
Curatorship nearing completion
The FSCA said the curatorship of Du Plessis’s financial services business and JLD Investments is ongoing and almost finished. Aubrey Magerman of Magermans Attorneys was previously appointed as curator for the business.
The regulator encouraged clients who have been affected to contact Magerman so their claims can be assessed. The FSCA also said it would formally inform the South African Police Service of the matter and is ready to help with the investigation if asked.
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