Leadership shake-up as Naeem Kola becomes COO

The group said Kola was “exceptionally well placed to drive strategic and operational synergies for the group with his extensive financial and operational experience in international fintech, and his understanding of Lesaka’s transformation through his role”.

He has been in the finance role since March 2022.

Dan Smith will take over the position of finance chief and will also join the company’s board. Smith is a chartered accountant, having qualified with PwC SA, before moving into various roles locally and in the UK.

He is an investment director at Value Capital Partners, Lesaka’s largest shareholder, “and has played an active role in the development of Lesaka since 2021”, the group said.

Smith has more than 25 years of corporate finance experience, including heading the M&A investment banking team at Standard Bank SA.

Both appointments will come into effect at the start of October, each reporting to Ali Mazanderani, Lesaka’s executive chair.

The group said nonexecutive director Javed Hamid would resign from the board on September 30, as announced in June. Former group CEO Chris Meyer, a nonexecutive director, would step down from the board as of October 1.

Monde Nkosi, who represents Value Capital Partners on the board, would also step down on completion of the Adumo transaction, which was expected to close in October.

Earlier last week, the Competition Tribunal approved Lesaka’s deal to buy local fintech operator Adumo for R1.6bn through a combination of stock and cash. 

The group signed a definitive agreement to acquire Adumo for $85.9m (R1.59bn at the time) in May.

Adumo’s ultimate shareholders include private equity player Apis Partners, African Rainbow Capital — the largest shareholder of Crossfin, the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and Adumo management.

Dean Sparrow, group CEO of Crossfin, will join Lesaka’s board as an independent nonexecutive director on completion of the Adumo acquisition. He will also join Lesaka’s capital allocation committee.

In a statement, Mazanderani said: “I am delighted to welcome Dan to the Lesaka leadership team. As Lesaka scales, we will continue to augment our executive capability to deliver on the opportunity in front of us. Dan is an exceptional addition to the team and has been intimately involved in the transformation of the business over the last few years. I am excited to be working with both him and Naeem in their new roles.

“I would like to thank Javed, Chris and Monde for the roles they have played over the past few years during a period of significant change. I also welcome Dean to the board. His insights and experience, as a successful entrepreneur and investor with deep fintech experience in Southern Africa, will be invaluable as we continue to build Southern Africa’s leading fintech platform.”

gavazam@businesslive.co.za