EFF deputy leader Floyd Shivambu has conceded that money from VBS Mutual Bank partially financed his Range Rover Sport but says the money is clean.

The Mail & Guardian reported on Friday that a company run by his brother Brian, Sgameka Projects, paid R680,000 to a dealership in Sandton where Floyd traded in his previous Range Rover for a new model.

The payment was to cover the trade-in shortfall.

Shivambu told the publication that the money was clean, because his brother had repaid two VBS loans of more than R4m. “So your imagination that there was money stolen from VBS is imaginary. Why would he settle the money if the money was stolen?” he asked.

A report by the South African Reserve Bank in 2018 suggested that Brian Shivambu or his companies had received about R16m via VBS.

TimesLIVE reported in August that Brian had been ordered by the high court in Johannesburg to pay R1.78m to the liquidators of VBS Mutual Bank.

The order followed an application by liquidator Anoosh Rooplal, who was trying to recover part of a R4m loan granted to Sgameka Projects in 2017.

The Mail and Guardian reported a week ago that the Hawks were looking into the purchase of the Range Rover - which retails for a minimum of around R1.1m.

Shivambu tweeted his thoughts on that report.