SPEAKERS
The 2025 lineup will feature key thought leaders in Southern Africa that will explore this year's theme.
MC: Nozipho Tshabalala
Nozipho Tshabalala
Nozipho Tshabalala is the CEO of The Conversation Strategists, renowned for moderating impactful global discussions. With a rich background in Economics, Politics, and Development, she has facilitated conversations for prestigious organisations like the World Bank and the United Nations. Her experience includes roles in The Presidency of South Africa and as an award-winning journalist at CNBC Africa. Nozipho serves on various boards, including LRMG and the Africa Leadership Initiative, and has been recognised as one of the Top 100 Most Influential Young Africans.
Prof. Adrian Saville
Prof. Adrian Saville
Adrian holds a Professorship in Economics, Finance & Strategy at the Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS), where he is the Founding Director of the Centre for African Management and Markets (CAMM). He is the author of the Visa Africa Integration Index (2012-2020) and the Investec-GIBS Savings Index (2015-2020), and has worked in many markets, from Brazil to Singapore. Since 2017 Adrian has chaired the investment committee of MeTTa Capital’s venture capital fund. He also holds a visiting professorship in Strategic Management at the Rotman School of Management in Toronto, Canada.
Over the past twenty-five years, alongside his academic career, Adrian established and grew an investment firm which was sold to a listed entity in 2017. In 2021 he joined a family investment office to launch their multi-asset investment portfolio alongside a special opportunities portfolio. In 2023 Adrian returned to his entrepreneurial roots to build Boundless World, an advisory firm focused on capital markets, business model innovation, and growth strategy.
Adrian holds a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) (cum laude), MCom (cum laude) and a PhD (Economics) for which he was awarded the Economics Society of South Africa’s Founders Medal. He is a UNESCO laureate, a matriculant of Linacre College (Oxford) and has completed programmes in Capital Markets at New York’s Columbia University; competitive strategy at Harvard Business School in Boston; Machine Learning at Stanford; Financial Markets at Yale; and Game Theory at the University of British Columbia.
Adrian is a member of various industry bodies, including the Academy of International Business, the Strategic Management Society, Investment Analysts Society, Economic Society of South Africa, Economic History Society of Southern Africa and Manual of Ideas (Global).
Akshay Karan
Akshay Karan
Akshay Karan is the Chief Investment Officer of Altvest Capital, an innovative, JSE listed, investment platform built around democratizing access to unique investment opportunities for ordinary South Africans and connecting small businesses to capital markets. As a CA(SA) and CAIA Charterholder, he has extensive experience in investment banking, management consulting, private equity, venture capital and alternative investments. He has helped build Altvest Capital from a startup to a dual-listed investment platform with almost R500 mil in assets under management within three years, and leads Altvest’s flagship Private Credit Fund, Altvest Credit Opportunities Fund.
Akshay is passionate about the intersection of traditional finance and social impact, and is a thought leader on utilizing innovative funding structures to achieve great risk-adjusted financial and social returns at scale. Most recently, he was a key figure behind Altvest’s consortium bid to purchase the commercial rights to the Springbok Rugby team, funded by and on behalf of ordinary South Africans and rugby fans.
Andile Keta
Andile Keta
Andile is a distinguished Chartered Accountant, Investment Manager, and Entrepreneur with over 22 years of executive and board experience. More than 21 years experience in advisory, asset management, private equity, investment banking, and insurance. Andile specialises in business development, capital raising, debt structuring, asset management, mergers & acquisitions, and stakeholder management.
Andile has managed assets and debt instruments exceeding R50 billion and executed transactions totaling over R75 billion at institutions such as Investec Limited Bank and Nedbank Limited. Andile is a Founder and former Partner of Kleoss Capital Private Equity Fund I. Andile is committed to sustainable investing, and youth empowerment.
Brian Brackeen
Brian Brackeen
Brian Brackeen is a Managing Partner at Lightship Capital, the Cincinnati-based firm investing in the most remarkable innovators and ecosystems across the nation.
Brian is also a leader on the uses of Artificial Intelligence, having founded, led, and exited a globally recognized provider of face recognition technologies, Kairos in 2012. His leadership saw the company positioned alongside tech giants like Microsoft and Face++ as one of the industry’s foremost providers, with operations in the US and Asia. Brian’s early acknowledgment of the dangers associated with algorithm focussed ethnic bias, stance against the government's use of facial recognition, and commitment to eliminating racial bias in its datasets inspired the current movement toward organized regulation and oversight of the technology.
Before becoming a tech entrepreneur and investor, Brian was a Senior Project Manager for Apple Inc. and a Senior Managing Consultant at IBM.
In addition to his work at Lightship, Brian lectures extensively around the world on entrepreneurship, code, the digital economy, AI, and machine learning — and participates in mentorship programs for organizations like Girls Who Code, Black Girls Code, and The School District of Miami, and is an advisor to the University of Chicago Science Commercialization Center.
Boitumelo Ngutshane
Boitumelo Ngutshane
Boitumelo has more than 20 years’ experience in providing Financial and Business Advisory services to clients in the public and private sectors. She works with local, continental and global clients. She has been involved in many financial and operational analysis assignments, working for both strategic and financial stakeholders. She has assisted clients across the entire transaction cycle, working with client’s strategic considerations at each stage of investment. She has advised on a number of highly visible transactions including assisting companies with listing on the JSE and the LSE.
Advising any client in South Africa means also providing the business with profitable considerations when developing a strategy in respect of B-BBEE. This is one of the areas of strength for Boitumelo.
With her two decades of experience, Boitumelo has advised clients not only during successful economic times but also under challenging economic conditions. This stands her in good stead to provide insight when developing a strategy across the investment cycle.
Boitumelo is a CA(SA) and a member of the Independent Regulatory Board of Auditors. She has also completed an advanced diploma in Banking Law (UJ) and B-BBEE Management Development (Wits).
Brent Blankfield
Brent Blankfield
Brent is the head of Westbrooke Alternative Asset Management’s South African Private Debt and Hybrid Capital business. Before joining Westbrooke, Brent spent 5 years at Investec where he specialised in leveraged finance. Brent was involved in numerous transactions incorporating leverage and management buyouts, capex or growth facilities and property finance. Brent is a qualified CA(SA) and also holds a BCom (Hons) from the University of Johannesburg.
Christine Kapkusum Ndiwa
Christine Kapkusum Ndiwa
Christine is a Senior Investment Officer at the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the largest global development institution focused exclusively on the private sector in developing countries. IFC is the most active Limited Partner in Sub-Saharan Africa private equity with over 60 active private equity funds, more than 300 investee companies and over USD1 billion in its own account committed and USD6 billion mobilized from other investors. Christine focuses primarily on private equity funds and fund-like vehicles for IFC and has led a variety of transactions ranging from large growth-equity PE funds engaged in pan-African transactions, small business entrepreneurship PE funds looking at difficult markets on the continent, to global projects investing across Africa and Asia
Prior to joining IFC, Christine worked as an Associate Director at Acumen Fund, a social venture capital fund operating in New York, East Africa (including Ethiopia), India, Pakistan, West Africa and Latin America. Prior to joining Acumen, Christine worked with the corporate finance department of the investment arm of the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development, Investment Promotion Services (IPS) and made investments in East Africa in infrastructure, telecommunications, agribusiness and manufacturing. She also took a lead role in actively supporting some of the project companies in balance sheet restructuring and streamlining of finance departments.
She is a Bachelor of Commerce graduate from Kenyatta University, and holds a Master in Business Administration (MBA) Degree from the United States International University. She is also a certified chartered accountant (CPA).
Collins Makhado
Craig Pitchers
Craig Pitchers
I am a lifelong logistics professional—it’s quite literally in my blood. My journey began after high school when I served in the South African Defence Force under the conscription rules of the time. I spent two years in D-Log (Defence Logistics), primarily managing the demobilization of border units in what was then South West Africa. Our operations involved moving everything from personal letters to trommels, relocating assets from Angola’s border to a facility in Brits, where they were redistributed, repurposed, or decommissioned.
Transitioning to the private sector, I have dedicated nearly three decades to mastering the logistics and courier industry. Over the years, I have held key leadership roles, including Divisional Director of Operations at UTi/DSV and CEO of Dawn Wing, gaining extensive experience in both operational efficiency and strategic growth. However, knowledge in this industry is only as valuable as its ability to remain relevant.
The past two years have brought a transformational shift in domestic courier services, driven by the rapid growth of e-commerce, consumer-to-consumer (C2C) shipping, and an increasing demand for instant delivery.
As the Chief Executive Officer of The Courier Guy South Africa, I am focused on meeting the evolving demands of B2C and C2C logistics, ensuring we remain at the forefront of the industry. We are continuously expanding our network, leveraging technology-driven solutions, and optimizing customer-facing processes to stay ahead of the curve. A key focus area is driving first-world innovation in Out-of-Home (OOH) delivery solutions, ensuring we provide consumers with greater convenience, flexibility, and accessibility through parcel lockers, pickup points, and smart last-mile delivery innovations. By integrating cutting-edge technology into our operations, we are not just keeping up with the changing landscape—we are defining it.
Derrick Msibi
Derrick Msibi
Derrick joined STANLIB Asset Management as chief executive officer in May 2017. Today, STANLIB is a steward of over R700 billion of clients’ investments in various investment strategies straddling listed and alternative investments.
Derrick started his career in the asset management industry at Old Mutual Investment Group in 1997 where he held senior positions including Executive Director: Marketing and Distribution, Executive Director: Alternative Investments, Corporate Finance Analyst and Portfolio Manager, and Head: Alternative Investments. His broad experience has given him a deep understanding of investment management, corporate finance and general management in the financial services sector.
In 2009, he joined Alexander Forbes Investments (previously Investment Solutions) as managing director, responsible for R350 billion in AUM as the leading multi-management firm in SA. A seasoned ultra marathon and standard marathon runner, he is involved in non-profit entities mainly focused on education and social housing as part of his contribution to nation-building. He has served as a director of various companies in financial services, food, toll roads and diversified investment holdings sectors. He has also served as a member and chair of various investment committees dealing with mainly non-public investments. Derrick is a chartered accountant with a BBusSci, BCom and MCom from the University of Cape Town. He holds a Program for Management Development Certificate from Harvard Business School and a Certificate of Management (a corporate customised programme) from London Business School.
Eugene du Toit
Eugene du Toit
Eugene is a financial sector regulatory expert with 18 years’ experience in the financial industry which he attained through a variety of positions across a diversity of disciplines, including legal, compliance, supervisory, enforcement and policy development functions, both from the private and public sector perspective. He has been fundamentally involved in the development and implementation of several major legislative and policy projects in the financial sector (primary and subordinate legislation), and in his current role as Departmental Head of Regulatory Frameworks in the FSCA, he is responsible for driving the FSCA’s regulatory framework strategy which includes the development and maintenance of legislation falling within the scope of the FSCA’s jurisdiction. Eugene holds B.Com Law and LLB degrees, and various post-graduate qualifications.
Fadi Bassi
Fadi Bassi
Fadi is an Investment Director in BII’s global Private Equity Funds & Co-investments team, where he has been for the past 10 years. He leads generalist PE fund transactions and direct co-investments. Prior to BII, Fadi spent 4 years in Corporate Finance at Ernst & Young UK where he qualified as a Chartered Accountant. Fadi read Civil Engineering at Imperial College London (BEng & MEng).
Graham Stokoe
Graham Stokoe
Graham is the Private Capital sector leader for EY Africa and is the EY Private leader for Strategy and Transactions in Africa. He has led > 150 buy-side and sell-side transaction diligence projects for Private Capital and Corporate clients on transactions across Sub-Saharan Africa. Joining EY’s Transaction Diligence team in London in 2004 and transitioning to the South Africa team in 2007, he has a wealth of experience in financial due diligence, M&A, IPOs, carve-outs and exit readiness.
He completed his BCom and BCom (Hons) at the University of Pretoria and is a CA(SA).
He is passionate about developing trusted transaction advisors and enabling capital flows to growing African businesses.
Heleen Goussard
Heleen Goussard
With almost 20 years’ experience, Heleen heads up the alternative investment team at RisCura – a market leader in investment solutions in emerging markets such as Africa and China, with $200 billion in assets under management. Under her leadership, the previous core independent valuations service offering has been successfully expanded to include a wide range of alternative investment services that cover asset classes such as private equity, infrastructure and private debt. She heads up RisCura’s unlisted investment programme and is an expert on alternative investments. Her knowledge and experience are often called on by industry bodies for comment on key industry papers. In addition, her thought leadership articles are often published by well-known media outlets. She is a regular speaker at prominent industry events where she provides insight into the industry and RisCura’s research. She previously worked as a corporate finance partner at PKF Inc. Heleen has a CA(SA), is a CFA charter holder and has a master’s degree in finance, focused on valuation from UCT.
Janina Slawski
Janina Slawski
Janina has an MBusSc degree from the University of Cape Town and has actuarial (Fellow of the UK Actuarial Profession and Fellow of the Actuarial Society of South Africa), investments (Chartered Financial Analyst and Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst) and risk (Financial Risk Manager and Chartered Enterprise Risk Actuary) qualifications. She has worked in the fields of life insurance and risk benefits, employee benefits, asset consulting, short term insurance and risk management, and investments, including distribution and marketing activities. She was President of the Actuarial Society of South Africa from 2003 to 2005, and Overseas Vice-President of the Faculty of Actuaries from 2006 to 2009. Her current responsibilities as Head: Investments Consulting at Alexforbes Investments include heading the client-facing investment teams across the Alexforbes multi-management solutions, investments advisory and investments actuarial teams, as well as consulting to several large clients.
Kent Davis
Kent Davis
Kent specialises in all aspects of financial regulatory law including insurance, collective investment schemes, financial markets, pension funds and anti-money laundering. He has advised numerous local and foreign financial institutions and groups on a wide range of topics including: structuring insurance arrangements, corporate restructures, solo and group governance, asset spreading requirements for insurers and pension funds, mergers and acquisitions, financial conglomerates and insurance groups, issues relating to the custody of financial assets, transfers of insurance business, the promotion of foreign funds and other financial products and instruments in South Africa, OTC derivatives, as well as compliance with South Africa's anti money-laundering and counter terrorist financing regime. He has also acted for several financial institutions in arbitrations and other regulatory disputes.
Luc Albinski
Luc Albinski
Luc is the co-founder of Vantage Capital’s mezzanine finance business which offers growth capital to mid-size businesses across Africa. Vantage recently raised its fourth generation pan-African mezzanine fund of about $380m and concluded its 34th investment. Luc also established a renewable energy business, Vantage GreenX, and recently launched an education investment platform in partnership with a Canadian franchisor, Maple Bear, which, is looking to build kindergarten and K12 schools in Poland and the Czech Republic called Vantage Best in Class.
Lungile Mashele
Lungile Mashele
Lungile Mashele is a seasoned energy economist with a distinguished career spanning over 15 years. Her journey began in the corporate world, honing her financial acumen in banking before transitioning to consulting and advisory roles.
Mashele has a deep-rooted involvement in the African energy landscape, having worked closely with state-owned energy companies and contributing to the development of critical energy infrastructure across the continent. Her expertise in project finance has been instrumental in assessing and supporting a wide range of energy projects.
Currently, Mashele serves as a technical due diligence expert for an institutional investor, providing invaluable insights into the financial viability and technical soundness of energy projects and funds. Her extensive knowledge of the African energy sector positions her as a trusted advisor to investors and stakeholders.
Mashele's academic credentials are equally impressive. She holds qualifications in economics, econometrics, insolvency law, cost engineering, and energy. Her pursuit of a PhD in Engineering Management further underscores her commitment to staying at the forefront of the energy sector.
Beyond her professional roles, Mashele is actively engaged in shaping the energy discourse. She lectures and provides expert commentary on African energy matters globally, sharing her insights and knowledge with a wider audience. Her biweekly column in Business Day and her role as a Non-Executive Director demonstrate her dedication to contributing to the industry's development.
A member of the Institute of Directors and the South African Institute of Electrical Engineers, Mashele is actively involved in professional organisations and networks. Her contributions to the energy sector have earned her recognition as a leading expert and a respected voice in the field.
Luke Sutton
Luke Sutton
Luke Sutton is Marsh’s Head of Transactional Risk for the Middle East & Africa and is based in the United Arab Emirates. He is an experienced transactional liability broker, having spent the last 6 years advising financial and strategic sponsors on placements (W&I/R&W and Contingent Risk) across a wide range of sectors, jurisdictions, and deal structures throughout EMEA. Until 2024, Luke was the Head of Placement for Marsh’s Private Equity and M&A business in the UK, where we worked closely with insurers on key client priorities, including product development and innovation.
Luke is a UK M&A and Private Equity lawyer by training and held roles in both legal private practice and in-house prior to joining Marsh in 2019.
Lydia Shadrach-Razzino
Lydia Shadrach-Razzino
Lydia Shadrach-Razzino is a partner in global law firm Baker McKenzie's Corporate M&A Practice Group in Johannesburg. Lydia focuses on public and private M&A and private equity transactions (across various industries, including telecommunications, retail, consumer, financial services, healthcare and mining). Lydia also advises on empowerment transactions, corporate governance, equity capital market transactions and general corporate finance. Her experience expands beyond South Africa, having advised on numerous cross-border transactions.
Mabatho Seeiso
Mabatho Seeiso
Mabatho serves as an independent trustee or chairperson on several boards of management of pension funds. She also serves as a non-executive director on some companies. She is a member of the Advisory Committee of the Southern African Pension Fund Investment Forum and a member of the Institute of Directors Southern Africa.
Mabatho’s past work experience includes working in sales, industrial and international trade development, new business development in the oil industry and management consulting. She joined the Financial Services Industry at the beginning of 2001 in private equity as an Assistant Portfolio Manager for Infrastructure Investments at Old Mutual Asset Management.
Mameetse Masemola
Mameetse Masemola
Ms. Masemola is a highly accomplished professional with a strong academic background and extensive experience in public policy, infrastructure investment, and economic regulation. She holds an MBA from the University of Reading’s Henley Business School, a Post-Graduate Diploma in Public and Development Management from the University of the Witwatersrand, and an Honours Degree in Economics from the University of the Western Cape, with part of her studies completed at the University of Missouri in the United States. Additionally, she has completed executive programmes in Leadership in Development from Harvard University and Evidence-based Policy Making from the University of Cape Town.
Currently, Ms. Masemola serves as the Acting Head of Infrastructure South Africa and the Deputy Director-General for Infrastructure Investment Planning & Oversight. In this dual role, she plays a pivotal role in shaping national infrastructure strategy. Her responsibilities include policy and legislation development, closing the infrastructure investment gap, and overseeing a portfolio of national infrastructure projects and programmes. She also ensures institutional coordination across government spheres and public entities. With a deep understanding of government planning frameworks and strategic partnership management, Ms. Masemola brings a wealth of expertise to her role. Prior to her current position, she led ICT sector development initiatives at the Department of Communications and Digital Technologies (DCDT).
Marieke Geurts
Marieke Geurts
Marieke is based in Nairobi, where she lives since 2015. She has a decade of African private equity experience, and joined Amethis in August 2022 as an investment director, after working with Ascent Capital for seven years. At Amethis, one of the larger pan-African private equity fund managers which is currently raising its third pan-African fund of EUR c. 400m, she leads EUR 20-50+m equity investments across the South and East Africa region and is a director of various portfolio companies of Amethis’ second fund. Marieke led transactions spanning various sectors including healthcare, manufacturing, retail & distribution, and services, across African markets including Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia, Tanzania, South Africa, Mauritius, and Mozambique
Marieke started her career in strategy consulting with McKinsey & Company in The Netherlands and Kenya. She holds a Masters in International Management (MiM) from CEMS and a MSc in International Management from the Rotterdam School of Management.
Meta Mhlarhi
Meta
Meta is an accomplished Chartered Accountant with a wealth of experience spanning over two decades. Meta is the Co-Founder of Mahlako Financial Services and Fund Principal for the R2 billion Mahlako Energy Fund, which targets investments in green hydrogen, gas, renewable energy and energy services. Her involvement in executing transactions and developing projects totalling over 500 MW demonstrates her instrumental role in driving growth and innovation within the energy sector.
Under her leadership, Mahlako has achieved remarkable success, with investments exceeding R20 billion since 2008 and advisory mandates totalling over R760 billion.
The Mahlako Energy Fund, has garnered significant recognition, including the prestigious ABSIP Best ESG Strategy Award and the NASP Africa Private Equity Award. Moreover, achieving Clear Glass Tier 1 status for two consecutive half-year periods, highlighting our commitment to excellence and sustainability in investment practices.
Furthermore, Meta's contributions extend beyond business success to include significant involvement in shaping policy and industry development. Her appointment to the Green Hydrogen Panel by the Minister of Trade, Industry, and Competition underscores her expertise and influence in driving sustainable energy initiatives at a national level. Additionally, Meta's entrepreneurial journey has been recognized through prestigious accolades, such as the Entrepreneur of the Year award by the African Women Chartered Accountants and her selection as a Woman of Fortitude, reflecting her commitment to excellence and leadership.
Notably, Meta is also a trailblazer in promoting diversity and inclusivity within the energy sector. As the Co-founder and Chairperson of the Black Energy Professionals Association (BEPA), she plays a vital role in advocating for the interests of black professionals and fostering radical economic transformation within the industry in South Africa. Through her leadership and initiatives like BEPA, Meta continues to drive positive change and empower underrepresented communities in the energy sector.
Mike Smith
Mike Smith
Mike has over 12 years of experience in developing & financing projects within the energy & water sectors. Financing water, particularly in the C&I arena is a complex endeavour. Having led Talbot’s EPC division, developed the pricing models for Talbot’s O&M team and served as the transaction advisor for several financed water projects, Mike has extensive domain knowledge & experience. His focused efforts in these areas have positioned him as a key player in advancing innovative finance solutions that address complex water challenges.
Mosa Molebatsi
Mosa Molebatsi
Mosa Joined Mergence in 2023 as a Senior Investment Associate. She has BCom (Actuarial Science, Quantitative Finance), BCom Honours (Finance), Master of Philosophy (Development Finance) and is a CFA® Charterholder .
Previously, Mosa worked at the International Finance Corporation, the Public Investment Corporation and Momentum Metropolitan Holdings in various investment roles.
Mosa’s focus is on Mergence’s private markets debt capability. She has been the lead on several significant transactions, including Solarise, an investment in the growing sector of clean energy within the commercial & industrial (C&I) sector via a private power-purchase agreement. Mosa is also involved in lecturing and foundation trustee work.
Nadia Nilsen
Pearl Sebakeng
Nadia is the CEO and Co-Founder of LightWare. With a comprehensive background in technology and financial management, Nadia works to drive strategic growth and operational excellence through digital and structural advancements in LightWare.
Nadia has over 14 years of experience in technology and manufacturing, including significant roles at K-TEK and ABB before joining LightWare. She began her career managing the business through a final merger and acquisition at K-TEK and led the instrumentation business unit at ABB to significant growth in sales. Nadia holds an MBA from Unisa Graduate School of Business Leadership and a B.Com (Hons) in Financial Management.
“My passion lies in leveraging innovative solutions to address customer needs, fostering ground-breaking products and services that make a real difference.”
Pearl Sebakeng
Pearl Sebakeng
Pearl Sebakeng is a highly skilled investment professional with over 15 years of experience at the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) where she has held various positions in the Infrastructure financing division. She has played a pivotal role in leading cross-functional project teams, facilitating infrastructure financing, and structuring complex transactions across Sub-Saharan Africa. Over the past decade, she has successfully closed deals exceeding ZAR 10 billion, contributing to DBSA’s growing footprint on the continent in the energy, transport, IT, water, social infrastructure and oil and gas sectors.
Her expertise lies in deal making, building strategic relationships with governments, development finance institutions (DFIs), and fund-raising entities to support DBSA’s investment objectives. With a deep understanding of infrastructure finance, risk assessment, and financial structuring, she is committed to driving sustainable investment solutions.
Rainer Steinhagen
Rainer Steinhagen
Rainer is a Senior Investment Manager in DEG’s African Private Equity Funds and Co-investments team, where he has been for the past 6 years. Based in Johannesburg he leads DEG’s origination efforts and portfolio management in southern Africa, whilst contributing to capital allocation and deal execution across the African continent.
Reabetswe Kungwane
Reabetswe Kungwane
Reabetswe Kungwane is an investment specialist in Ninety One’s Emerging Market Alternative Credit team. She focuses on private credit markets and is a generalist, covering sectors ranging from real estate, industrials, and infrastructure, to name a few. Her responsibilities include, among others, deal origination and implementation, credit analysis, ESG and developmental impact risk assessment, and portfolio management.
Prior to joining the firm, Reabetswe was in investment banking, having worked at Rand Merchant Bank (RMB), where she covered credit investments focusing on banks and multilateral financial institutions across SADC and Asia. She also worked as a manager in the Banking & Capital Markets division of PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PwC) South Africa and London.
Reabetswe is a Chartered Accountant (SA) and holds a Master of Commerce degree in Development Finance from the University of Cape Town’s Graduate School of Business, a Bachelor of Commerce (Honours) degree in Accounting Sciences, and a Certificate in the Theory of Accounting from the University of Pretoria.
Refilwe Mokanse
Refilwe Mokanse
Refilwe Mokanse is an Infrastructure Finance Specialist at the Infrastructure Fund, a ringfenced division of the Development Bank of Southern Africa. The Infrastructure Fund was established to structure, design, package and implement blended finance solutions for public infrastructure projects and programmes. Prior to joining infrastructure Fund, Refilwe worked as a Senior Projects Analyst in the Budget Office of the National Treasury for 13 years specialising on Public-Private Partnerships. Refilwe Mokanse holds a Masters of Development Finance from the University of Stellenbosch and a Bachelor of Economics Honours from the University of Pretoria.
Rudi Dicks
Rudi Dicks
Rudi Dicks is the Head of the Project Management Office (PMO) in the Private Office of the President. He is responsible for supporting the implementation of the Presidential Employment Stimulus (PES), the Presidential Youth Employment Initiative (PYEI) as well as unblocking regulatory challenges that impact on employment an economic growth. He also oversees the coordination and implementation of the Just Energy Transition Investment Plan. Rudi jointly leads Operation Vulindlela which has been established as a joint initiative between the Presidency and National Treasury to accelerate structural reforms.
In his previous role, he was an Outcomes Facilitator at the Department of Planning Monitoring and Evaluation (DPME), responsible for monitoring the performance of economic and infrastructure outcomes and supporting various economic interventions across government. In this role he established the Socio-Economic Impact Assessment System (SEIAS) that is currently applied across national government.
He also formally served as the Executive Director of the National Labour and Economic Development Institute (NALEDI), the research arm of COSATU from 2008 to 2013. Before 2008, he worked at COSATU and its affiliates, in various capacities since 1994.
Rudi has a Post-Graduate Diploma in Economic Principles as well as a Master of Science (MSc) Finance from the University of London. He also has a Management Advanced Programme qualification from the WITS Business School.
Samantha Pokroy
Samantha Pokroy
Samantha is the Founder and CEO of Sanari Capital, a private equity firm focused on investments in growth companies emanating from Africa (mainly from South Africa) with regional and global scalability and exposure. They emphasize digital and human enablement to unlock business potential.
Samantha has almost 20 years of private equity and venture capital experience in the South African and United States markets. She played a leading role in investments at Ethos Private Equity, prior to which she worked in private equity in Chicago and investment banking and consulting in New York.
Samantha holds an MBA (Hons) from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, a BCom and BA Honours.
Shayne Krige
Shayne Krige
Shayne Krige is the Head of the Investment Funds practice area. He also forms part of the Private Equity, Corporate Mergers & Acquisitions and Technology & Innovation practice areas. Shayne specialises in investment funds; private equity; and international transactions. His expertise covers the range of investment fund types – from hedge funds, pension funds to private equity and venture capital funds – extending to corporate/mergers & acquisitions as well as corporate structuring. Shayne has acted for investment funds; fund managers and investors as well as major corporations seeking to invest into and out of South Africa and practised in Europe for 12 years.
Sipho Makhubela
Sipho Makhubela
Sipho joined Harith in 2007 as an investment manager. He was later promoted to head of the Pan African Infrastructure Development Fund (PAIDF 1) before transitioning to the role of MD: Investments, taking charge of the entire investment portfolio. Sipho was appointed as CEO in September 2020, to lead a new chapter of the Group as it expands its footprint in Africa. This is subsequent to Tshepo stepping down as CEO to focus on the growth initiatives of the Group. He is a seasoned investment professional with proven industry leadership across the African continent at companies such as Coronation Capital, AMB and Investec. Throughout his private equity career, Sipho has invested in and grown businesses in major economic cities including Lagos (Nigeria), Accra (Ghana) and Nairobi (Kenya), in Abidjan (Cote I’voire)
Board membership:
- Kelvin Power Station
- Lanseria International Airport
- Anergi
- MainOne
- CIVH
Sonja Saunderson
Sonja Saunderson
Sonja Saunderson is the Chief Investment Officer of the EPPF (previously Eskom Pension and Provident Fund). Sonja joined the fund in November 2022 and is part of the executive and investment teams, responsible for driving its strategic agenda of which delivery of investment returns for the EPPF members, and responsible investing, are amongst the key focus areas.
She previously was the Chief Investment Officer of Momentum Investments, responsible for ensuring the outcome-based investment philosophy is ingrained and represented in all portfolios.
Sonja has 22 years’ experience in the industry and joined the Momentum Metropolitan Group (via a related company) in 1999 as an actuarial assistant doing asset and liability modelling for the company’s defined-benefit retirement fund clients. Sonja lectured Actuarial Science and Statistics at the North-West University School for Business Mathematics and Informatics before joining the industry. She studied BSc in Mathematics and Computer Science at North-West University, after which she completed a BCom and BCom (Hons) in Economics and Statistics. She completed a MCom in Statistics and Economics and various actuarial subjects before pursuing a career in the investment management industry. She also completed an Advanced Certificate in Financial Planning. Her various roles included research analyst, head of research, head of product development and deputy chief investment officer before being promoted to chief investment officer in 2010 at Momentum Outcome-based Solutions. Momentum Outcome-based Solutions was incorporated into Momentum Investments. Sonja has extensive experience in constructing goals-based outcomes for clients as well as portfolio construction, risk management, investment manager selection and portfolio management in general.
Tamryn Theunissen
Tamryn Theunissen
Tamryn Theunissen is based in Johannesburg and is a partner in the Banking and Finance practice at Webber Wentzel. With a focus on complex financial transactions, Tamryn has extensive experience in acquisition financing, fund financings and leveraged finance transactions.
As a seasoned banking and finance attorney, Tamryn brings valuable insights and expertise to clients navigating the intricacies of financial transactions.
Thomas Mketelwa
Tshegofatso Tshukudu
Tshegofatso Tshukudu
Tshegofatso Tshukudu is an Investment Manager at Adenia in the South Africa office and is involved in the full suite of private equity functions, from deal origination and execution to management and exit. Tshego currently sits on the Board of Directors for The Courier Guy and Enfin.
Prior to joining Adenia in 2022, Tshego worked for Emerging Capital Partners, looking after portfolio companies in Kenya and South Africa. Prior to that, he worked for Goldman Sachs in the Investment Banking Division in Johannesburg, focused on Mergers and Acquisitions across Sub-Saharan Africa.
Tshego holds an Honours in Investment Management and a Bachelor of Commerce (Accounting) from the University of Johannesburg.
Vukile Themba-Mketo
Vukile Themba-Mketo
Vukile is a multi-disciplinary investment professional who specialises in private credit, has a strong ability to fundraise, build teams and advance business objectives. She has worked within private credit for the last 10 years and is currently portfolio manager on two of Sanlam’s private credit impact funds. Her portfolio management work to date has focused on providing debt funding to mid-sized businesses, across a variety of sectors, with the goal of creating jobs, reducing inequalities, and driving transformation, while generating compelling financial returns.
Vukile is deeply committed to social justice, the private markets, and a belief in the power of investment management to transform the South African economy and generate a legacy of wealth for all. Vukile holds a B.Com Honours degree in Financial Analysis and Portfolio Management (FAPM) (UCT) and is currently pursuing a Master of Commerce in Development Finance at the University of Cape Town.
Vuyo Ntoi
Vuyo Ntoi
Vuyo was appointed Co-Managing Director of AIIM in August 2020.Prior to moving into this role, Vuyo was the Co-Portfolio Manager of the R15-billion IDEAS Managed Fund, which primarily focuses on infrastructure investment and development assets in the SADC region.
Vuyo holds several directorships, including positions on the boards of some of AIIM’s portfolio companies. He is also a Trustee of the Africa Infrastructure Developers Association (AFiDA). Vuyo holds degrees from UCT, Oxford University and IESE Business School. He has also completed Harvard Business School’s Advanced Management Program and is and part of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.
Yvonne Maitin
Yvonne Maitin
Ms. Maitin is a seasoned investment professional with extensive technical skills in addition to broad executive management and leadership experience gained over 25 years serving in Financial Services. Her experience spans across private equity, private debt, corporate & investment banking, derivatives structuring and economic research while serving for various Pan-African and Global institutions.
She was the Head: Unlisted Investments at the Public Investment Corporation where she managed the Isibaya Fund investment portfolio with over R100 billion Assets Under Management (AUM). She began her private equity career at Actis Private Equity in 2007 where she was a member of the Pan-African investment team. Her role included deal origination, financial modelling, investment appraisals and portfolio management & monitoring serving on investee company boards.
She later joined the Liberty group where she was a Divisional Director at LibFin focused on private equity and credit investments before serving as a private equity specialist fundraiser at STANLIB. In 2016, she was a partner and member of the investment team at Bopa Moruo Private Equity before becoming the Founder and CEO at One Africa Capital from 2018 to 2023.
Prior to the above, Yvonne was a derivatives trader and structurer at Standard Bank Corporate & Investment Banking (Global markets) responsible for structuring derivative instruments for Asset & Liability Management operating across 10 African countries. She led, structured and executed the first long-dated cross-currency basis swap in Uganda, which was recognized as the ‘Deal of the Year 2005’. She has a solid foundation formed in Macro-Economic research, analysis and econometric modelling gained from serving as an Economic analyst at Credit Suisse in 2000.
Yvonne holds an MBA (Finance) from the University of Edinburgh, Scotland (UK) and a BCom (Honours) in Financial Economics & Econometrics from Rhodes University. She is also licensed by the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) to manage Pension Fund savings. She currently serves as the Lead Independent Director at Norsad Capital.