Lesaka Technologies’ accounting chief Alex Smith will step down at the end of February, the fintech group said on Wednesday. The group will not look for a replacement, choosing instead to spread the work to the rest of its finance team.
The company, formerly known as Net1, said Smith will leave “to pursue other opportunities”. Until then “he will assist the company in consolidating the roles and responsibilities of chief accounting officer into the ambit of Lesaka’s highly experienced finance team”.
Smith, a former CFO at Altron, was interim group CEO at Lesaka for more than a year after the resignation of former boss Herman Kotzé in September 2020. Smith joined the group in March 2018 and served as CFO for four years.
The group, valued at R4.4bn, has a primary listing on the Nasdaq and a secondary one on the JSE, and uses its banking and payment technology to distribute low-cost financial and value-added services to small businesses and consumers.
Lesaka says the integration with the newly acquired Connect Group resulted in a restructuring that will see the chief accounting role being done away with.
Group CFO Naeem Kola said: “As part of the integration of Connect, we have built a finance and reporting function that is well equipped to support Lesaka’s growth prospects and execute on opportunities for expansion as these emerge. I would like to thank Alex for his support, insights and contribution our team.”
“The integration of Connect benefited the finance function substantially, by incorporating Connect’s capable and experienced finance team. Consequently, the roles and responsibilities previously undertaken by the CAO [accounting chief] are being consolidated into Lesaka’s finance team.”
Recent earnings growth has been driven by Connect, which forms part of a strategy shift.
Lesaka bought Connect in April through a R3.7bn deal meant to expand its footprint in the small, medium and micro enterprises (SMME) sector in Southern Africa. Connect, founded in 2006, provides fintech solutions to nearly 44,000 SMMEs.
Earlier in January, Lesaka said it had retained Steven Heilbron — a former joint CEO of Investec Bank as CEO of Connect — a role he has held since 2013.
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