JSE-listed company mum on payments to CEO and family members
Altvest Capital preferred not to answer questions from Daily Investor about payments to its CEO and family members and valuation increases.
These questions followed an article that Altvest Capital paid its chief executive, Warren Wheatley, more than the total revenue of the company.
Wheatley and Koshiek Karan co-founded Altvest Capital in March 2021 as a financial infrastructure company to democratise access to investment opportunities.
It offers investors a gateway into tangible assets, including private credit, venture capital, cross-border growth funds, and income-generating businesses.
“We built Altvest to dismantle barriers, making investing a personal and accessible endeavour for all,” Wheatley said.
The company enjoyed strong support, with high-profile businessmen like Rob Hersov promoting the new investment vehicle.
In May 2022, Altvest Capital listed on the Cape Town Stock Exchange (CTSE). “This wasn’t just a business move. It was the opening of a gateway,” it said.
“The listing enabled secondary trading of specialised investment vehicles and signalled that alternative investment assets were no longer confined to private dealings.”
The company invested in Umganu Lodge, along with cricketer Kevin Pietersen, and a Bambanani restaurant. It also unveiled the Altvest Credit Opportunities Fund.
The company’s ambition turned to the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE), which would enhance its visibility and increase liquidity.
On 14 October 2024, Altvest Capital was listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange’s (JSE’s) Alternative Exchange (AltX) Board.
Through this listing, Altvest Capital transferred its listing from the Cape Town Stock Exchange to the JSE’s AltX Board.
By listing on the JSE, Altvest can tap into a broader investor base, facilitating capital raising and improving the company’s ability to finance growth initiatives.
“Listing on the JSE is a strategic move that will help us reach more investors and enhance these investment and funding opportunities for all,” Wheatley said.
At the listing, he stated that Altvest’s future projects will include venture capital, renewable energy, sustainable agriculture, and blockchain-led initiatives.
Altvest Capital JSE listing and revenue
Altvest Capital buys shares in private companies and lists structured preference shares (hybrid securities) on public exchanges. Investors can then buy these hybrid securities on public exchanges.
These hybrid securities differ from ordinary shares in that investors typically do not receive voting rights in the purchased asset.
Altvest Capital retains the full voting rights of the shares that it initially purchased from private companies.
The securities are structured preference shares, which means that investors purchase a share of the economic benefits generated by the companies in which Altvest owns a stake.
The returns on these securities depend on the underlying investments and are, therefore, not guaranteed.
Altvest’s primary source of revenue, like most holding companies, is from fees it charges on its assets under management.
This is typically a flat annual rate that is charged monthly on the total value of the investments within the Altvest group.
After Altvest Capital was listed on the JSE AltX, it increased revenue significantly from R973,261 in the 2024 financial year to R7.6 million in the 2025 financial year.
While Altvest’s revenue increased to R7.6 million, its net profit surged over 6 times its revenue to R47.9 million.
Fair value adjustments drove this profit increase. These are increases in the book valuations of companies owned by Altvest, but do not represent real cash income.
Should the effects of fair value gains be removed from the net profit, Altvest reported a loss before tax of R26.5 million.
The charts below show Altvest Capital’s financial performance over the last four financial years.
Umganu Lodge Investment
In 2022, Altvest bought a 50% stake in Umganu lodge for R15 million, putting the Lodge’s total value at R30 million.
Since then, Altvest reported a series of fair value adjustments increasing its 50% shareholding by R8.1 million. This increased Umganu Lodge’s fair value from R30 million to R46.2 million.
The fair value adjustments came despite Umganu Lodge reporting two consecutive years of revenue decline.
Umganu Lodge has reported net losses in 2022, 2024, and 2025, excluding the impact of fair value adjustments.
Daily Investor asked Altvest Capital what caused the 54% increase in value of the Umganu Lodge.
The company preferred not to answer, saying, “We will not engage in click-bait-oriented questioning, clearly attempting to sensationalise extracts, within an article that may skew context”.
Altvest Credit Opportunity Fund (ACOF)
The company established the Altvest Credit Opportunity Fund (ACOF) to provide financing to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
The fund was launched in 2022, and by 2023, the Altvest Credit Opportunity Fund still had a carrying value of Rnil.
However, in 2024, Altvest invested R22 million into the fund and reported a significant R75 million fair value gain on the ACOF in its books.
A year later, ACOF invested an additional R35 million in the fund and reported a significant R91 million fair value gain.
Within just two years, the Altvest Credit Opportunity Fund’s carrying value increased from Rnil to R222 million.
Over the past 2 years, the fund reported a significant increase in its loss before taxes. In the last financial year, the ACOF reported R16.9 million in loss before taxes, which included a R7.1 million impairment of loans and advances to customers
Daily Investor asked Altvest Capital what caused the increase in value of the Altvest Credit Opportunities Fund.
The company preferred not to answer, saying, “We will not engage in click-bait-oriented questioning, clearly attempting to sensationalise extracts, within an article that may skew context”.
Altvest paid its CEO more than the company’s total revenue
Altvest Capital’s latest annual report revealed the uncommon situation that the company paid its chief executive, Wheatley, more than the total revenue of the company.
In the last financial year, Altvest generated revenue of R7.6 million. In the same year, it paid its CEO, Warren Wheatley, R8 million.
Altvest reported operating expenses of R29.4 million, nearly four times higher than its revenue. It also reported R1.7 million in interest expenditure.
Altvest’s cash flows from operating activities indicate that the group incurred a net cash outflow of R26.3 million from its operating activities.
Despite the poor cashflow performance, Altvest reported a R86.2 million fair value gain in its income statement for the 2025 year, resulting in a net profit of R48 million.
Altvest explained that it was important to understand its CEO’s compensation in the context of the company’s business model.
It explained that as a listed investment company, net asset value (NAV) growth and long-term capital appreciation are the primary performance benchmarks.
It explained that looking at annual revenue can misrepresent the performance in investment-led businesses.
“Over the past three years, Altvest’s NAV per share has increased more than 13-fold, growing shareholder equity from R8.5 million to R126 million with minimal dilution,” it said.
It added that Wheatley has played an instrumental role in this growth through leadership and significant personal financial support.
This includes R26 million in direct capital injections and a R75 million personal guarantee, which involves pledging his own Altvest shares and personal assets.
“These contributions have ensured financial resilience and allowed Altvest to execute on its long-term growth strategy,” it said.
It added that Wheatley’s R8 million pay package in the most recent financial year must be viewed in full context.
“His 4-year average salary is R2.5 million, the lowest among peers in the listed financial sector,” Altvest Capital said.
“His compensation is performance-based and tied to agreed targets. Most notably, the dramatic NAV growth that directly benefits shareholders,” they said.
They added that Wheatley has repeatedly prioritised the business over personal income, including drawing zero salary in the 2024 financial year.
Daily Investor asked Altvest Capital why Wheatley’s base salary increased from R1.86 million to R5.4 million in the last financial year.
The company preferred not to answer, saying, “We will not engage in click-bait-oriented questioning, clearly attempting to sensationalise extracts, within an article that may skew context”.
The chart below shows Wheatley’s base salary based on the company’s financial reports over the last few years.
Altvest Capital related party transactions
In 2023, Altvest Capital reported numerous related-party transactions to companies linked to chief executive Warren Wheatley and his family members.
Related party transactions in listed companies involve dealings between the company and individuals or entities that have a close relationship with the company or its management.
- In 2023, R1.2 million was paid to RCW Capital, a company owned by Robin Wheatley, a family member of Warren Wheatley, in legal fees.
- In 2023, R500,000 was paid to Tatum Keshwar Investments, a company owned by Tatum Keshwar, the wife of Warren Wheatley, in consulting fees.
- In 2023, R3.83 million was paid to WGW Capital, a company of which Warren Wheatley and his immediate family are the ultimate owners and beneficiaries.
Daily Investor inquired about these related-party transactions and their purpose with Altvest Capital, but the company preferred not to comment.
It said, “We will not engage in click-bait-oriented questioning, clearly attempting to sensationalise extracts, within an article that may skew context”.
Altvest Capital executives and directors
Altvest Capital has assembled an impressive board, comprising many well-known individuals in South Africa’s business arena.
Its chairman, Stafford Masie, has held influential roles in prominent ICT companies, including Telkom, Dimension Data, Novell, Google, and WeWork.
Other directors include Vestact investment manager Bright Khumalo, Kasinomics founder GG Alcock, and Tshikululu Social Investments acting CFO Khaya Sithole.
The other two directors are chief executive Warren Wheatley and former Bank of Botswana executive Norma Sephuma.
Altvest Capital has experienced a high turnover of directors since its founding four years ago.
One of the directors who left the company was Altvest co-founder and former executive chairman, Koshiek Karan.
He tendered his resignation from the position of executive chairman and member of Altvest Capital’s board of directors effective 21 July 2023.
The table below shows Altvest Capital’s directors over the last four years.
| Name | Date appointed | Resignation date | Designation |
| WG Wheatley | 2021/04/21 | – | Executive Director |
| R Stronach | 2021/03/10 | 2022/09/26 | Executive Director |
| KS Karan | 2021/06/18 | 2023/07/21 | Executive Director |
| NB Khumalo | 2022/02/01 | – | Independent Non-Executive |
| J Baynham | 2022/02/01 | 2025/02/28 | Independent Non-Executive |
| F Mukkaddam | 2022/02/01 | 2025/03/01 | Independent Non-Executive |
| H Barnhoorn | 2022/06/01 | 2025/03/02 | Independent Non-Executive |
| SP Emery | 2021/04/21 | 2021/06/18 | Independent Non-Executive |
| CS Stewart | 2022/02/10 | 2022/03/08 | Independent Non-Executive |
| BS Hersov | 2021/07/01 | 2021/11/24 | Independent Non-Executive |
| RB Hogg | 2021/07/27 | 2021/11/24 | Independent Non-Executive |
| SG Massie | 2023/07/31 | – | Independent Non-Executive |
| GM Alcock | 2023/07/31 | – | Independent Non-Executive |
| KS Sithole | 2023/07/21 | – | Independent Non-Executive |
| CJH Geyer | 2023/07/21 | 2023/11/24 | Executive Director |
| E De Jager | 2021/03/14 | – | Company Secretary |
| GM Sephuma | 2023/03/01 | – | Independent Non-Executive |
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