The Cape Town High Court has rejected socialite Berdine Odendaal's attempt to access more money from her bank accounts frozen by the SA Reserve Bank. The funds are suspected to have come from illicit Steinhoff money channelled to her by her alleged lover, Markus Jooste.

The South African Reserve Bank was legally entitled to stop monthly payouts of R150,000 to alleged Steinhoff heist beneficiary Berdine Odendaal, the Cape Town High Court has found.

Odendaal's attempt to access more money from her bank accounts frozen by the SA Reserve Bank for suspected exchange control violations has backfired badly, with the socialite now cut off from her supply.

Between July 2021 and March 2022, Odendaal received about R1.4-million in monthly payments. In February 2022, she launched an application in the Cape Town High Court seeking an order that the SA Reserve Bank pay her legal fees, over and above the monthly payments of R150,000.

On Thursday, Judge Derek Wille dismissed Odendaal's attempt to have further funds unblocked from frozen accounts. Odendaal, a socialite and keen polo player, has been romantically linked to the disgraced former Steinhoff CEO, Markus Jooste.

In future, the SA Reserve Bank will only consider the release of any funds to Odendaal "for reasonable expenses" after the presentation of "sufficient proof that the alleged expense had been incurred, and that it is an expense that justifies the release of funds".

Judge Wille said that Odendaal, by way of her application to the court,...