Dalsan - the money transfer co. - has collapsed

[Baashi]

Dalsan is no more. Over seven million of US dollars are missing from the purse! Dalsan is founded and run by two respected men. The problem stem from disagreement between the two founders according to Waxa-la-Yiri news source.

 

Scores of investors (from all over the world) made their way to Nairobi in order to find more info about this unexpected biz blunder. To their surprise they have been told that the company has lost this much money through unconventional lending practices. It went like this: Company agents would lend money to friends or relatives (against company's own guidelines) and fix the books later. This practice has been going on over last four years. Most of the folks whom money have been lent to never paid back.

 

Ironically the top brass who run the biz didn't lose that much money. Small investors (shares that range from 50K and below have lost every penny. Angry and disappointed shareholders are demanding to put Dalsan's real estate on sale and proceeding from that sale be distributed (equally) to all investors.

 

This is Somali version of Enron fiasco nay I take it that back...this one is 6 degrees above Enron! Ironically Somali media has nothing to say about this important business story. Waxa-la-Yiri news will undertake an investigative report and get the scoop on this out to the public IA.

[Rahima]

Ironically the top brass who run the biz didn't lose that much money.

That’s not true. The owners have lost a lot. The people who have not lost much however are those who set out for payback. Don’t ask Baashi, can’t get into, but it’s true and from an immediate source .

 

Somali business can get very dirty and since we don’t have any way of holding perpetrators accountable, they will get off free.

[Baashi]

Abaayo I just came back from Nairobi. I have an intimate Knowledge of the inside story of the Dalsan collapse. It is a nasty game if you ask me.

 

FYI Sheikh Umal and co. tried their best to bring some common sense into this with no avail. The thing is most of the shareholders, regional agents as well as top managers are folks with Islamic orientation.

 

The credibility and integrity of well known sheikhs hangs in the balance wallahi if agreeable resolution is not reached asap.

[Libaax-Sankataabte]

Baashi, saxib good to see you back from Nairobi.

 

A while ago I heard Dalsan "waa kacday waxaana hadda la bilaabay xawilaad cusub oo layiraahdo Qaran. lol. Nimankii madaxda ahaa oo dadku u arkayeen niman wadaado ah ayaa mid walba lacagtii uu hayey la aamusay. Markii la weydiiyeyna waxay yiraahdeen waxba meesha ma yaalaan oo aniga ayayba lacagi iga maqan tahay."

 

Wasn't Dalsan created by Amal defectors in the first place?

[Abaadir]

Libaax.. waa runtaa Dalsan waxaa bilaabay nimankii Amal ka soo tagay. Dhibaatada dalsan ku dhacday waxaa ugu wacan maamul xumo. iyo nimankii dadku aaminay oo dadkii qiyaamay. Hantida ay Dalsan lahay sida Guryaha waxaa ku qoran niman ay labada nin oo dadka dhacay qaraabo yihiin. Waxaa midaas oo dhan ka sii daran... labda nin mid ka mid ah oo dadku ku xantaan in uu asagu masuul ka yahay dhibaatada dhacday waxaa lagu daray Golaha Shuurada ee ay wadaadadu xamar uga dhawaaqeey ( the 88 shoura council)... Cajiib.... wadaad tali tiisana ku waday

[Baashi]

Lion Teaser, good to be back sxb. There are a lot of folks who have lost a whole lot of money in this one. Insha'Allah they will recover their investment in due time. I've seen folks from all over the globe getting all worked up and they don't even know who to blame or what to do or where to start they are just angry and I mean dead angry mainly cuz they don't have enough time to stick around.

 

On a side note, the city is too dirty. East Leigh district is an overcrowded corner full of qaat-addicts and street hustlers. The infrastructure is almost non-existent. In short the city is a neglected ghetto. Darn the dust alone can give you a serious germ let alone uncovered sewage lines.

 

On the upside, the biz is booming and there are three-star hotels within East Leigh proper. I've seen folks who made fortunes in last 16 years. I have met guys who have formed small company in late 2000. Guess what? Their company is worth have million and employs over sixteen employees mostly Somali Kenyans because of government regulations. They have security guards, a lawyer, a manager, and an auditor. Darn! it was very impressive.

 

East Leigh has now high-rises built by Dalsan and Amal companies. City slickers are abound too. Trucking business is well alive and Somalis now own valuable real estate in Nairobi (South C for instance). They are really a force to reckon with. You name it and any brand is imported (from China of all places and Asia minor) by Somali businessmen. There are no middlemen except Health Care products (because of government regulations and expensive license plus corruption).

 

Man! folks will tease with a catch phrases like "what have you done for yourself" and "you must have a load of money in your bag" and "how much do you have...200 grand perhaps". What an attitude! The confidence and ambition is heartwarming. I was shown plan after plan cuz they thought I am a potential investor. The tribalism is a factor in this too. Only folks in your clan will approach you unless you have friends in other clans. The wealth is in the hands of men, mostly, with Islamic orientation. It is amazing.

 

On the other side of the coin, the poverty is rampant. It is heartbreaking wallahi. Women, veiled women, with children (I have a sensitive heart for this) standing in front of hotels and masjids trying to make the ends meet by asking handouts is as common as pedestrians. Where are the men who fathered these kids you wonder sometimes? My heart goes out for them. As a father I can only imagine the heartache of not knowing what to feed these lil angels. I'm humbled wallahi. Once they figure you are newcomers you count on scores of them coming after ur behind every time you come out. The good thing I liked about this is that hotel owners don't abuse these women by trying to remove them near the gates. That's very nice of them I thought.

 

The other thing I noticed is that almost all the women are veiled ninja style. Get this! Some of them do this not out of piety per se I was told but out of protecting their faces and other parts from the dust. The "Diana factor" is a big issue. Too much skin bleaching has its side effect too I was told. Their skin is now very sensitive. Prostitution and other deviants are another problem and concern for the health agencies.

 

What else...hmm...I guess that's about it. Will post some pics Insha'Allah.

[Pacifist]

Thanks baashi for the update I guess not much has changed since I was last in Nairobi. Aboowe how is the sharci thing, are those askaris still asking for Kipanda or was it kitambulisha? Most of these bizness's that are huge now, mind you they started with nothing. Did you have hard time at the airport? Did you only go to kenya?

 

Reminds me of the food in eastleigh,,,The mukati mayayi at jump street. Even the somali restaurants. The food in Africa is soo tasty not like these overprocessed chemical foods.

 

A friend of mine is touring in Africa....checking out of new business ventures. Places like Uganda, Tanzania( Arusha, Dar and Zanzibar), Angola which is a diamond boom town, especially Luanda, it is a growing country at the moment..after the civil war. There is alot of things to do back in the MTC. Inshallah am planning to visit this winter. Travel to Uganda, then Kenya drive through Tanzania, Go to my hometown Zambia and then go all the way to SA inshallah. People are creating $1000 businesses into millions. I tell you.. the market is wide open.

 

Baashi please share pics.

[Baluug]

I guess it's a good thing I use Dahabshiil.

[STOIC]

Baashi, whats happening with the wadhatatha, do they want the investors to invite Eliot Spitzer on them? We are glad to see that you are back from Nairobi. I don't know if you been to the coast, did you see any shipping business there? There is a guy that I lived with here in the qurbaha who is doing big things over there. He ships goods all over Africa from Somalia to Mozambique with his own ship. Any disciplined entrepreneur will surely make it in African business. All it needs is a little hard work and some dexterous business skills. I know couple of guys who went back to start business in Kenya after getting tired with American jobs. It is great to see them doing well. I am normally the type of person who doesn't trust or entertain the idea of going back and starting business in Africa. I remember many years ago before I became citizen I had the burning desire to go back to Kenya and start my own business, but I guess things change every time you get over the hurdle that is keeping you back. I just can't see me sending my pay check (sorry Brits this is how we write cheque) to Africa.

 

MCxamar, I didn't know the "white boys" wires money back to Africa.Glad to see you are taking care of the Xithiitka.Just make sure you don't send anything more than 300 dollars a month or else you will raise the bar for potential inlaws

[Jacpher]

Hawalas are based on trust of the people. Once they lose the trust, their business will come to an end, whether owned or run by wadaado. In Dalsan’s case, the damage is already done. I doubt if they will regain the trust of their customers. All those trusted agents/individuals used to work for Dalsan, are now running other Hawalas.

 

Baashoow, dadkaas masaakiinta ah dad am heyado caawiya ma jiraan?

[Baashi]

Pacifist, Yes the plicemen with guns are still around and yes they do ask sharci every now and then especially late at night. I haven't encountered them. By all indications they are not a problem though.

 

My experience at the airoport was as smooth as that of Heathrow. As everybody else you pay 50 bucks and bang! three month visa is stamped on ur passport. If anything the kenyans were eagerly trying to strike a convo with me in a friendly manner. "Are you a waryaa?" is the ice-breaker and from there on they opened up like easy going laid back Somali! None of them asked me a bribe. If anything they were trying to help me carry my luggage. It was truly amazing how things have changed.

 

As to the food I preferred to eat at the hotel I was staying. I went out twice to the restuarants and I didn't like it. As to whether I went to other countries the answer is no. My colleagues went to Tanzania and Rwanda and the pictures they shared with me is absolutely stunning. Magnifico!...will share with SOL Allah-willing.

 

MCXamar, the problem with Dalsan was never about the services they were providing. It is rather a problem betwwn the investors and folks who run the business. Dahabshiil Co. is truly revolutionary in Somali standards. It is owned by one man and hence he has a complete control over its operations. That's awesome.

 

Stoic, Abaadir, Jimcaale and other folks who implied that "wadaads" are somehow guilty of something that's far from the truth. This is about particualr individuals who happen to be folks with Islamic orientation. To blame the whole movements is a blanket statement. I hope that's not what you guys meant.

 

Jimcaale, no is the answer to ur question. No there is no help other than the lil sadaqa they got from devout and likeminded folks. What I'm talking about is just poor people majority of whom are women with children. I mentioned them because their ordeal kinda broke my heart. No one can get rid of poverty and this was a manifestation of the poverty in some segment of Somali folks in East Leigh.

[Maf Kees]

Nice to read the coverage of Islii. Many close relatives live there and this reminded me to give them a call. Maybe even go to Nairobi in a few years time myself. Saw the website of the Amal Plaza. Very impressive!

 

The story of Dalsan was bound to happen. If not Dalsan, some other company with hundreds of 'inadeer' investors would fall from its grace. There will always be some men who will shamelessly take advantage of the trust that is given to them.

 

But this is probably the biggest scandal from Somali Business since the horrible stories about the service of the newborn Somali Airline companies.