End of an era for South Africa’s biggest private school group

Curro’s shareholders overwhelmingly voted in favour of the private school giant’s privatisation, with the company set to delist from the JSE and become a non-profit organisation.

This comes after the Jannie Mouton Foundation offered to buy all of the company’s shares for around R7.2 billion earlier this year.

Established in 1998, Curro has since become the largest private school group in South Africa.

The company has over 180 schools in operation across South Africa, serving affordable, high-quality education to a broad cross-section of South African society.

Jannie Mouton is one of South Africa’s most successful businessmen, having founded many of the country’s most well-known companies, including the PSG Group, Capitec, and Curro.

The Jannie Mouton Foundation is a charitable organisation that was founded by Mouton as a public benefit organisation.

In August 2025, the foundation announced its plan to acquire all of Curro Holdings’ issued shares, offering shareholders the equivalent of R13.00 in Capitec shares, PSG Financial Services shares, and cash in exchange for their Curro shares.

On Friday, 31 October, the company confirmed that this transaction received an overwhelmingly positive reaction from shareholders, who voted 99.98% in favour of the deal at the company’s general meeting.

“Curro is pleased with the significant support shown by shareholders for the proposed transaction, which is reflected in the votes,” it said. 

“This is a unique and game-changing transaction for South African education, and has the potential to benefit the public at large, for many generations to come.”

With shareholder approval obtained, the deal is now only subject to approval from the South African and Botswana Competition Authorities.

If the deal gets the green light, Curro will delist from the JSE and become a non-profit organisation.

“Education has always been close to Jannie’s heart; he sees it as a powerful way to uplift communities in South Africa and help South Africans reach their full potential,” the foundation said. 

“That’s why the Trust is putting almost all of its resources into making this happen. By working with Curro, the Trust believes it can create far greater impact.”

“Building and improving schools takes time, and most investors aren’t willing to wait that long. But the Trust is in it for the long haul, focused on making a real, lasting difference.”

Foundation chair Jan Mouton said this is quite possibly the largest philanthropic contribution South Africa has ever seen.

“Over time, this will open the door for thousands more children to attend Curro schools through bursaries, broadening access to excellent education,” he said.

He referred to this sale as a landmark transaction for all parties involved, with the potential to deliver significant benefits for South Africa as a whole.

“When I started Curro, my goal was to create broad access for learners to high-quality education and teaching,” Curro founder Chris van der Merwe said. 

“Thanks to the Jannie Mouton Foundation, this dream is entering into an exciting phase. Now, thousands of talented children who might never have had the chance to go to excellent schools will get the opportunity to reach their full potential.”