The Public Investment Corporation (PIC), which has recently breached the R3-trillion assets under management (AUM) mark for the first time in its history, is searching for a new CEO with the incumbent Abel Sithole set to retire in July 2025.
David Masondo, who chairs the PIC, said the board had taken a decision to be proactive and give sufficient time to appoint a new CEO and to “ensure a seamless leadership transition at the PIC” — the largest investor on the JSE.
“The PIC board is grateful to Mr Sithole for his exceptional leadership and invaluable contribution to the company’s turnaround, growth and success during his tenure”, Masondo said.
“Mr Sithole played a pivotal role in expanding the company’s market presence, restoring ethics and integrity to the PIC’s investment, governance and business processes, ensuring that the recommendations of the Mpati Commission were implemented, and in the consistent growth in AUM of the PIC’s clients.”
Sithole was appointed to the role in 2020 by a board led by then chair Reuel Khoza. At the time, Sithole was the principal executive officer of the Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF) and the commissioner of the Financial Sector Conduct Authority.
The PIC board’s mandate is also set to lapse soon. The Khoza- and Masondo-led boards were appointed to fix governance lapses that emerged at the asset manager which led to President Cyril Ramaphosa in 2018 establishing a commission of inquiry to probe allegations of maleficence at the company.
The inquiry was chaired by retired judge Lex Mpati.
One of the steps the board took was to separate the roles of CEO and CIO chief — roles that were combined under former boss Dan Matjila to the detriment of investment decision-making processes. Matjila testified at the Mpati commission that he and his staff had come under pressure from politically connected individuals to bankroll deals without the required due diligence.
One of Mpati’s observations was that the frequent changes to the finance minister as the shareholder representative and the role of the deputy minister as chair, regardless of skills and experience, contributed to ineffective governance at the PIC.
However, this concern was not addressed as Ramaphosa signed the PIC Amendment Act, which still required that the chair of the fund manager’s board be a deputy minister appointed by the finance minister or any other deputy minister in the economic cluster.
One of the changes that followed the Mpati commission saw the inclusion of workers representatives on the PIC board. The PIC invests funds on behalf of the GEPF and the Unemployment Insurance Fund.
Masondo said Sithole had given an undertaking that he would ensure a proper handover to his eventual successor.
“The board will engage in a comprehensive search to identify qualified candidates possessing the required asset management industry expertise, strategic acumen, and a proven track record of achieving sustainable business growth.”
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