The woman running Africa’s biggest stock exchange

Dr Leila Fourie went from humble beginnings to becoming the chief executive of the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE), Africa’s largest stock exchange.

She is recognised as one of the most influential businesswomen in South Africa. However, she had a very modest start to her journey, growing up as one of ten siblings in Johannesburg.

“We didn’t grow up in a family with enormous wealth,” Fourie explained in an interview with The Future Leader.

“So compromise and learning to be creative becomes a part of your DNA, and that was a very important foundational element in defining who I am and moulding my leadership structure.”

Growing up the way she did also helped foster Fourie’s entrepreneurial spirit, and she started her career at a young age washing cars around her neighbourhood.

As a child, she was very drawn to science. “A year before I was born, the U.S. sent Armstrong to the moon, and I was obviously very intrigued by that. So I was always very keen to become an astronaut.”

Her biggest inspiration was also the renowned, two-time Nobel prize-winning scientist Marie Curie.

“My mom had her book when I was growing up, and I read it multiple times. My mom subsequently gave me that book.”

She “became an iconic representation of success” for Fourie, who drew great inspiration from Curie’s relentless resolve to continue her pursuits and dedication to sharing knowledge.

She was also very inspired by Curie’s commitment to education. She made great sacrifices to help fund her sister’s education, and she pursued a field that was largely male-dominated at the time.

Fourie has shown the same commitment to her education, winning the Economic Society South Africa Founders’ Award in 2012 for best Masters Economics thesis in the country and obtaining a PhD in Economic and Financial Sciences.

Fourie has held a number of notable roles throughout her career.

She began her professional journey in the financial services industry at Accenture (formerly Andersen Consulting), where she was a senior manager for over five years.

Fourie went on to work for Standard Bank as Card Division Managing Director, and from 2012 to 2015 she served as an executive director responsible for post-trade and information services at the JSE.

From 2016 to 2019, Fourie held the role of chief executive officer of the Australian Payments Network, where she led Australia’s payment systems, enhancing the security and efficiency of the financial transaction infrastructure.

However, Fourie’s career took a big turn when Nicky Newton-King, the previous CEO of the JSE, retired in 2019.

“I took a very alternative and unorthodox decision to come back to South Africa after spending three marvellous years in Australia,” she said.

At the time, Fourie and her family were all living in Australia, and she had made many good friends and established a very successful career there.

“I was also extremely happy in Australia, the lifestyle suited my value system – spending a lot of time outdoors,” Fourie explained on the Smart Money show.

However, she knew that she wanted to make a difference, and the JSE, which she described as “a proxy for the broader macroeconomy”, was exactly the place where she knew she would be able to affect broader structural changes.

So, she left her family behind in Australia and went to join the JSE as CEO in October 2019.

Within six months of taking on the role, though, she faced a significant challenge as the COVID-19 pandemic hit.

During this time, she turned to historical figures such as Marcus Aurelius, who was faced with the Antonine Plague, for inspiration.

“Lessons that I learned from him was that everybody else fled, but he remained,” Fourie explained.

“He died of the Antonine plague in the end, but he showed empathy. He gave his wife’s jewellery away to support the medical needs of others, and even on his deathbed, he planned for succession.”

This focus on empathy has also been an essential part of how Fourie approaches leadership in her own position.

“Nothing prepares you for any senior role, it’s always a very lonely role,” she said.

“But if you’re open-minded to other people’s experiences and other people’s views, your leadership ability takes you through and really makes a big contribution to individuals’ lives around you and to organisations.”

“I found that to be the case, particularly during the period of the pandemic,” she said.

Despite her many successful achievements, Fourie believes that interpersonal moments are still the highlights of her career.

“The moments that really matter for me in my career are where I’ve made a genuine contribution to the growth and development of somebody else.”

“Doubling the profit or introducing new very successful products, repositioning a company – those are all great things, but people very quickly forget.”

“What people don’t forget is how you make them feel and what contribution you made in their career growth trajectory.”