PIC and CIO Kabelo Rikhotso part ways

The Public Investment Corporation (PIC) and its chief investment officer (CIO) Kabelo Rikhotso have reached a mutual agreement to terminate their employment relationship on an amicable basis. The asset manager confirmed this in a joint media statement on Sunday. Rikhotso expressed gratitude for his tenure at the organisation, which manages about R3-trillion in South African state-worker pension funds.

Rikhotso has served as the PIC’s CIO since May 2022 and was suspended last year with immediate effect after a whistleblower report raised allegations of misconduct. The PIC said the suspension was procedural in line with labour legislation and internal policies and also aimed at ensuring a fair, objective, and independent investigation. “The suspension does not, in any way, constitute a finding nor is it a pronouncement of any wrongdoing on the part of the CIO,” the PIC said.

To ensure continuity, August van Heerden, the PIC’s chief risk officer, has been appointed as acting CIO. The announcement comes amid ongoing legal and reputational challenges for the PIC. The Johannesburg high court recently restrained Ralebala Matome Mampeule, a director of Levoca 805, from making or repeating defamatory allegations accusing PIC officials of corruption, bribery, and extortion.

[paywall]

The allegations targeted the PIC’s head of investment legal, Lindiwe Dlamini, but the court found no evidence to substantiate the claims. The PIC said Mampeule had refused to retract the allegations, and further legal proceedings are expected. The dispute originates from a February 2024 transaction in which the PIC approved a R725m loan to Levoca to acquire a 19.5% stake in MetroFibre Networx as part of its transformation mandate.

[/paywall]