Few things would have pleased Verwoerd more than the idea that racism and race essentialism are still alive and well.

The bank is concerned that a former director – a Holocaust denialist – has betrayed confidentiality with "scurrilous allegations" in his book.

Stephen Goodson has been on the South African Reserve Bank’s board from 2003. He holds extremist views on Hitler’s Germany and Gaddafi’s Libya.

Two German catholic groups on Friday appealed to fellow members of the faith to back the pope in the row over a Holocaust-denying bishop.