New chairman takes over South Africa’s R3.5 trillion asset manager

South Africa’s government appointed a new chairman at the state-owned fund manager that oversees R3.5 trillion, seeking to restore confidence in an institution buffeted by years of governance scandals. 

Deputy Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation Minister Seiso Mohai will replace David Masondo as chairman of the Public Investment Corporation, Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni said at a briefing in Pretoria on Thursday.

Masondo, the nation’s deputy finance minister, resigned from the post last week.

The board appointments cap two weeks of management turbulence at the PIC, after Masondo suspended CEO Patrick Dlamini over governance concerns — an action Dlamini is challenging in court.

Masondo, in turn, stepped down under pressure from his boss, Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana, after the two differed over how the issue was handled.

Mohai, 59, has been the deputy planning minister since July 2024.

A member of the ANC, he’s previously served as the chairman of the Select Committee on Appropriations and co-chairman of the Joint Standing Committee on Financial Management of Parliament, according to the legislature’s website.

The PIC’s new leadership will be tasked with restoring stability at the fund, which manages civil servants’ pensions and has significant minority stakes in most of South Africa’s biggest companies — giving it considerable influence over the country’s corporate landscape.

Its holdings include more than a fifth of technology giant Naspers and telecommunications firm MTN, and about 15% of banks Absa, FirstRand, Investec, Capitec and Standard Bank.