The one-time holding company of sanctioned Israeli billionaire Dan Gertler has agreed to pay a hefty R490 million penalty to resolve a years-long Dutch corruption investigation linked to mining transactions in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The settlement, announced on Tuesday by the Dutch prosecution authority, brings to an end a probe that began in 2018 into suspected bribery connected to lucrative copper and cobalt mining rights in the mineral-rich central African nation.
Bribes allegedly paid to secure mining rights at cut-rate prices
Dutch investigators had been examining whether Fleurette, a Netherlands-registered entity that functioned as the corporate vehicle for Gertler's business empire, along with Swiss commodities heavyweight Glencore, made illicit payments to obtain mining licences at prices well below market value. Authorities suspected that tens of millions of US dollars had been channelled to a senior adviser of former DRC president Joseph Kabila, who governed the conflict-torn but resource-abundant country from 2001 to 2019 and maintained a close personal relationship with Gertler.
The Dutch prosecution service confirmed it had imposed a penalty of 25.8 million euros — equivalent to approximately R490 million — on Fleurette on 6 March.
"By accepting this criminal settlement, the public prosecutor establishes that Fleurette, acting in concert with others, is guilty of bribing foreign public officials in the DRC in connection with the acquisition of mining licences."
The investigation into Glencore, which had partnered with Gertler on deals in the DRC, was previously dropped by Dutch authorities after the Swiss-based commodities firm settled a separate corruption inquiry in Switzerland by paying its own fine.
In a statement issued on Monday, Fleurette acknowledged it had paid the 25.8 million euro settlement to Dutch authorities as stipulated by the penal order. The company maintained that the resolution closed an eight-year investigation into historical matters stretching back to 2010, and stressed that no charges had been brought against any individuals or other entities.
Gertler remains influential despite US sanctions and Panama Papers revelations
Gertler, who continues to command considerable influence within the DRC, first found himself in Washington's crosshairs in 2017 when the United States imposed sanctions against him for allegedly depriving the Congolese state of roughly $1.4 billion in revenue through opaque mining arrangements. Although former US President Donald Trump lifted some of those restrictions near the conclusion of his first term in office, authorities in Washington reinstated him on the sanctions blacklist in March 2021.
"[The settlement brings] to a close an eight-year investigation into historic matters dating back to 2010, without charge against any individuals or other entities."
In February 2022, the Congolese government announced it had reached its own out-of-court agreement with Gertler, enabling the DRC to reclaim disputed mining and petroleum assets valued at more than $2 billion. The Israeli tycoon's profitable operations in the country first attracted widespread scrutiny following the release of the Panama Papers in 2016, which shed light on his extensive financial dealings.
Gertler, who spent close to two decades serving as an intermediary on some of the largest transactions in the DRC's notoriously graft-plagued mining sector, has consistently denied all allegations of corruption or improper business practices.
South Africa's deep economic ties to the DRC's mining sector, particularly through companies like Glencore with significant local operations, make this settlement directly relevant to regional business confidence and regulatory scrutiny. The DRC supplies much of the world's cobalt and copper, minerals critical to South African manufacturing and trade corridors. This case may prompt closer examination of cross-border mining governance and could influence how African governments negotiate future resource extraction deals with foreign investors.
