Business
Elias Masilela resigns as CEO of Africa’s largest fund manager
Elias Masilela
Elias Masilela has resigned as the Chief Executive Officer of South Africa’s Public Investment Corporation – Africa’s biggest fund manager and the largest shareholder on the Johannesburg stock exchange.
Masilela, 50, will take outstanding leave immediately and officially leave on June 30 after more than 3 years on the job, the Pretoria-based Public Investment Corporation, which manages 1.6 trillion rand (US$153 billion) in assets, said in an e-mailed statement today. Chief Financial Officer Matshepo More will be acting head of the manager of the pension funds of South African state workers.
The investment corporation has used its shareholding to prevent foreign takeovers of South African companies including pharmaceuticals maker Adcock Ingram Holdings Ltd. and to force the departure of the chief executive officer of Togo’s Ecobank Transnational Inc.
The fund holds 11 percent of the value on Johannesburg’s stock exchange, including 13.6 percent of Naspers Ltd., South Africa’s biggest company by market value, and 14.1 percent of MTN Group Ltd., the second-biggest. It has invested in 4 African companies outside of South Africa.
As well as increasing the fund’s assets to 1.6 trillion rand (US$153 billion) from 1 trillion rand (US$96 billion) in 2010, Masilela sought to back development projects to underpin economic growth and fought for local control of companies whenever it was possible.
“The leadership role at the Public Investment Corporation is pivotal, especially in the spiritual direction the entity provides to listed-corporate South Africa,” Standard Bank Group Ltd. Chief Economist Goolam Ballim said by phone from Johannesburg. “Mr. Masilela injected clinical and extensive understanding of investment markets and risk.”
The fund, last year opposed CFR Pharmaceuticals SA’s 12.8 billion rand (US$1.2 billion) offer for Adcock. Ecobank’s board in March replaced CEO Thierry Tanoh after the Public Investment Corporation called for him to quit amid allegations of mismanagement, which he denied.
