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The Spar Group has rejected allegations of VAT fraud raised in a disputed forensic report, saying that internal reviews and auditors have found no irregularities. The group has warned of legal steps against the complainant behind the claims.The dispute follows allegations stemming from a BDO report into the Bloed Street store in Pretoria, which raised concerns about alleged VAT manipulation, stock irregularities and weak financial controls, Business Day reported. The findings were linked to due diligence conducted during a failed attempt to purchase the store.The complainant, businessperson Amaan Sayed, has referred the matter to the JSE, the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (Saica) and the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission (CIPC), triggering regulatory attention.In a Sens announcement and subsequent media statement on Wednesday, Spar rejected the allegations and said the report did not reflect its broader operations.“No reportable irregularities have been raised by our external auditor, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), in respect of the group’s financial reporting or governance processes. The BDO engagement was a limited, single-store due diligence review, commissioned under confidentiality arrangements. It was neither an audit nor a forensic audit of the group’s operations, and it does not represent systemic findings across the group,” it said.“Spar rejects any suggestion that VAT fraud has been established. No finding of VAT fraud has been made against Spar or the corporate store concerned. The characterisation of the matter as a ‘VAT fraud saga’ is therefore totally inaccurate and misleading.”Failed business dealThe group further maintained that the complaints are linked to a failed business transaction and not supported by broader evidence of wrongdoing across its network. It defended the decision to reject Sayed’s application to re-enter the retailer network, describing it as a “sound governance decision”. “Equally noteworthy is the fact that, despite receiving the BDO report in September 2025, Mr Sayed continued negotiations regarding the acquisition of the store and subsequently signed a sale agreement in February 2026. Regulatory complaints were only initiated after his application for membership in the Spar Guild was declined — a timeline that speaks to the true motivation behind these allegations,” reads the statement.“The decision to decline Mr Sayed’s application for re-admittance was taken by the North Rand Regional Committee of the guild, and in accordance with the guild’s established governance processes and objective membership criteria, including considerations relating to credit history and brand stewardship, the guild stands fully behind that decision. Attempts to characterise a sound governance decision as anything other than the proper exercise of the guild’s mandate will be firmly rebutted.”Spar has also indicated that it is considering legal action in response to the unsubstantiated claims, escalating the dispute between the wholesaler and Sayed beyond regulatory complaints into potential litigation.“It is regrettable that this matter has escalated in this manner, considering the group has sought to engage with Mr Sayed constructively and in good faith to address his concerns. Unfortunately, despite these efforts, unfounded allegations have continued to be advanced publicly in the media, causing unnecessary reputational harm not only to the Spar brand but also to the broader network of independent retailers who operate under the brand.“Consequently, Spar has placed Mr Sayed on legal terms and has instructed its attorneys to pursue all available remedies regarding defamatory statements made against the group, as well as breach of a confidentiality agreement in relation to the report,” the group said in the statement.Reacting to the announcement, Sayed has disputed Spar’s claim that it has only engaged one regulator, saying his complaints are also being actively considered by multiple authorities. He said that the issues he raised are currently in the files of the JSE, the Independent Regulatory Board for Auditors, and CIPC, and that these were submitted in April. “These matters were raised with the regulators in good faith in the public interest, and I will allow the regulatory processes to take their course,” he said.Recently, Spar has also had to defend its chair Mike Bosman from its independent retailers’ revolt, Business Day reported. The retailers have asked for Bosman to resign from his chairmanship, blaming him for ongoing leadership instability, a severe decline in the group’s market value and a breakdown of trust between independent store owners and corporate management. Nonetheless, Spar has vowed to back him. Business Day
