Billionaire Patrice Motsepe’s GoTyme Bank to make all employees shareholders

GoTyme Bank Ltd., the fast-growing digital lender controlled by South African billionaire Patrice Motsepe, has offered stock options to all its employees as the company pushes aggressively to scale operations across Africa and Asia.

According to Bloomberg, the development was disclosed by the bank’s Chief Executive Officer, Cheslyn Jacobs, during an event held in Johannesburg on Thursday night.

He said the employee ownership initiative was designed to make workers think and act like long-term stakeholders in the business.

Motsepe, one of Africa’s richest businessmen, is widely known for building a mining empire through African Rainbow Minerals and for his investments across banking, energy and financial services. Beyond business, he also serves as president of the Confederation of African Football and has consistently expanded his influence across key sectors on the continent.

What GoTyme Bank is saying

Jacobs explained that the lender decided to extend ownership opportunities across all levels of the company because management wanted workers to feel personally connected to the bank’s long-term success.

• “We want our staff to behave like owners,” Jacobs said. “This business still is in a hyper-growth phase so we think this is going to make meaningful differences to our people’s lives.” 

The employee share offering comes as the digital bank continues its rapid expansion drive, signing up roughly 450,000 new customers every month across South Africa and the Philippines, two of its fastest-growing markets.

GoTyme Bank, regarded as Africa’s first profitable standalone digital bank, currently has more than 21 million customers across both countries through its operations and joint ventures.

Jacobs also revealed that while the company still intends to pursue a stock market listing in the future, management has become more cautious about attaching strict timelines to the plan.

• “We’ve publicly said we want to do this before the next decade, but we do talk about it slightly differently now,” he said. “What we’ve realized is you struggle to predict these things, so now we talk about being listing-ready from a timeline perspective in three to four years from now. But we’re only going to do it if it makes sense.” 

He added that the lender would likely consider listing on a global exchange once it reaches around 50 million customers and achieves what the company considers the “right kind of valuation.” 

More insights

GoTyme Bank is majority-owned by African Rainbow Capital Investments, Motsepe’s investment firm, and has steadily expanded its footprint beyond Africa.

The digital lender also counts Tencent Holdings among its backers and operates a joint venture in the Philippines with the Gokongwei Group. Beyond South Africa and the Philippines, the company also has operations in Hong Kong, Indonesia, Vietnam and Singapore.

• The lender’s valuation surged to about $1.5 billion in 2024 following a fundraising round that included a $150 million investment from Nu Holdings, one of Latin America’s biggest fintech firms.

Although Jacobs declined to disclose an updated valuation, he said the bank was on course to post a record annual profit for the financial year ending in June.

What you should know

Motsepe remains one of Africa’s most influential businessmen, with investments spanning mining, finance, telecommunications and sports administration.

• In 2021, according to Forbes, the South African billionaire became the country’s first Black billionaire through mining investments and has since expanded his reach through strategic acquisitions and partnerships across several industries.

Apart from leading African Rainbow Capital Investments and maintaining influence in the mining sector, Motsepe has recently continued expanding his global business footprint. One of the most notable moves came through Harmony Gold’s acquisition of MAC Copper Limited in Australia.

In October 2025, Motsepe also completed another major mining transaction through Harmony Gold, South Africa’s largest gold producer, after the company finalized the $1.01 billion acquisition of MAC Copper Limited, owner of the CSA Copper Mine in New South Wales, Australia.

GoTyme Bank Ltd., the fast-growing digital lender controlled by South African billionaire Patrice Motsepe, has offered stock options to all its employees as the company pushes aggressively to scale operations across Africa and Asia.

According to Bloomberg, the development was disclosed by the bank’s Chief Executive Officer, Cheslyn Jacobs, during an event held in Johannesburg on Thursday night.

He said the employee ownership initiative was designed to make workers think and act like long-term stakeholders in the business.

Motsepe, one of Africa’s richest businessmen, is widely known for building a mining empire through African Rainbow Minerals and for his investments across banking, energy and financial services. Beyond business, he also serves as president of the Confederation of African Football and has consistently expanded his influence across key sectors on the continent.

What GoTyme Bank is saying

Jacobs explained that the lender decided to extend ownership opportunities across all levels of the company because management wanted workers to feel personally connected to the bank’s long-term success.

• “We want our staff to behave like owners,” Jacobs said. “This business still is in a hyper-growth phase so we think this is going to make meaningful differences to our people’s lives.” 

The employee share offering comes as the digital bank continues its rapid expansion drive, signing up roughly 450,000 new customers every month across South Africa and the Philippines, two of its fastest-growing markets.

GoTyme Bank, regarded as Africa’s first profitable standalone digital bank, currently has more than 21 million customers across both countries through its operations and joint ventures.

Jacobs also revealed that while the company still intends to pursue a stock market listing in the future, management has become more cautious about attaching strict timelines to the plan.

• “We’ve publicly said we want to do this before the next decade, but we do talk about it slightly differently now,” he said. “What we’ve realized is you struggle to predict these things, so now we talk about being listing-ready from a timeline perspective in three to four years from now. But we’re only going to do it if it makes sense.” 

He added that the lender would likely consider listing on a global exchange once it reaches around 50 million customers and achieves what the company considers the “right kind of valuation.” 

More insights

GoTyme Bank is majority-owned by African Rainbow Capital Investments, Motsepe’s investment firm, and has steadily expanded its footprint beyond Africa.

The digital lender also counts Tencent Holdings among its backers and operates a joint venture in the Philippines with the Gokongwei Group. Beyond South Africa and the Philippines, the company also has operations in Hong Kong, Indonesia, Vietnam and Singapore.

• The lender’s valuation surged to about $1.5 billion in 2024 following a fundraising round that included a $150 million investment from Nu Holdings, one of Latin America’s biggest fintech firms.

Although Jacobs declined to disclose an updated valuation, he said the bank was on course to post a record annual profit for the financial year ending in June.

What you should know

Motsepe remains one of Africa’s most influential businessmen, with investments spanning mining, finance, telecommunications and sports administration.

• In 2021, according to Forbes, the South African billionaire became the country’s first Black billionaire through mining investments and has since expanded his reach through strategic acquisitions and partnerships across several industries.

Apart from leading African Rainbow Capital Investments and maintaining influence in the mining sector, Motsepe has recently continued expanding his global business footprint. One of the most notable moves came through Harmony Gold’s acquisition of MAC Copper Limited in Australia.

In October 2025, Motsepe also completed another major mining transaction through Harmony Gold, South Africa’s largest gold producer, after the company finalized the $1.01 billion acquisition of MAC Copper Limited, owner of the CSA Copper Mine in New South Wales, Australia.