We may be all too familiar with the Gupta family, given their stranglehold over our elected leaders, but further abroad coverage is a little more limited.

When the likes of the Wall Street Journal sit up and take notice you know there’s real grit to the story though, and the latest developments have piqued overseas interest.

Here are a few excerpts from a piece titled “Gupta Family to Sell Holdings as Political Turbulence Hits South Africa’s Economy”:

Political shock waves roiling South Africa’s economy continued to reverberate, with news that a controversial business family linked to President Jacob Zuma would sell all its assets in the country and reports that the finance minister would this week be charged for graft.

The Gupta family—owners of a business empire stretching from mining to media—said Saturday it would sell all its shareholdings by the end of the year. The Guptas have long been dogged by allegations that they bought influence with Mr. Zuma’s administration to further their business interests and score deals in strategic sectors. The family and the president have repeatedly denied any impropriety, but South Africa’s anticorruption watchdog said last month it would get more funds to investigate the allegations…

The weekend’s developments appear to be facets of a broader battle between South Africa’s president and his finance minister. The fault lines reopened in the wake of the ruling African National Congress’s worst election result since the collapse of apartheid, stoking fears over the stability of Africa’s most developed economy.

Stung by local election losses in which the party of Nelson Mandelaceded power in several key constituencies for the first time since apartheid, Mr. Zuma has called for the national budget to be “reprioritized.” Mr. Gordhan has pledged to cap spending and debt as he battles to stave off a credit-rating downgrade to junk.

Nothing we haven’t heard before, but always nice to see an overseas take on something that we’re exposed to on the daily.

You can read that story in full HERE.

[source:wsj]