--- title: "Naspers executives: finance directors, South Africa CEO and officers" language: en canonical: https://dossiertwist.com/dossiers/naspers/executives/ as_of: 2026-09-21 keywords: ["Naspers","Prosus","Tencent","Koos Bekker","Fabricio Bloisi","Keeromstraat 30 Beleggings","Naspers Beleggings","A ordinary shares","cross-holding","share repurchase programme","Media24","MultiChoice","Takealot","Avito","Kismet Capital Group","Ivan Tavrin","Competition Commission","Competition Tribunal","Just Eat Takeaway.com","PayU"] --- # Naspers executives: finance directors, South Africa CEO and officers **Question.** Who have been the finance directors and other senior executives of Naspers, and where do company records and aggregator listings differ on their dates? **Answer.** Naspers's records show Steve Pacak as executive director and financial director from 1998 to 2014, Basil Sgourdos as group chief financial officer from July 2014 until his retirement effective 30 November 2024, and Nico Marais as interim chief financial officer from December 2024 and chief financial officer and financial director from 29 April 2025. Phuthi Mahanyele-Dabengwa joined as South Africa CEO in July 2019 and became an executive director of Naspers Limited on 1 April 2025; Mark Sorour, group chief investment officer, retired from the group on 31 March 2018 but stayed on the board, and Lynelle Bagwandeen, group company secretary, joined the group in August 2020. A market-data aggregator gives other dates for several of them, for example 29 December 2024 for Marais as chief financial officer and 2010 for the start of Mahanyele-Dabengwa's Shanduka role, and it alone lists Mario Shiliashki as a chief executive from 2015 to 2018 without naming the business he led. ## Finance directors: Pacak, Sgourdos and Marais - Analysis: Steve Pacak (S J Z Pacak) was an executive director and the financial director of Naspers from 1998 to 2014. Naspers's FY2026 report states that he began his career with Naspers at M-Net in 1988, held various executive positions in the group, was an executive director from 1998 and served as the group's financial director until retiring in 2014. The 2004 annual report describes him as chief financial officer of the Naspers group, appointed in 1998, gives 24 April 1998 as his appointment date as an executive director, and states that he had been chief executive of M-Cell Limited from 1995 to 1998 and was a director of MIH BV, MIH Holdings, M-Web, SuperSport International, M-Net and other companies within the wider Naspers group. The annual financial statements for the year to 31 March 2014 state that he had an indefinite employment contract and would retire as financial director on 30 June 2014, remaining on the board as a non-executive director, and that Basil Sgourdos, then chief financial officer of Naspers Limited, would succeed him. [src-006] [src-052] [src-115] [src-157] - Documented: Naspers's 2004 annual report states that Pacak had been chief executive of M-Cell Limited from 1995 to 1998 and was a director of MIH BV, MIH Holdings, M-Web, SuperSport International, M-Net and other companies within the wider Naspers group. [src-157] - Qualification: The CV sentence on M-Cell follows directly on the sentence naming Pacak, across a page break of the retained copy. - Analysis: After retiring as financial director in 2014, Pacak remained on the Naspers board as a non-executive director, and from August 2019 he was also an independent non-executive director of Prosus. A market-data aggregator's records list Stephan Pacak as a board member of Naspers from 23 April 1998 to 20 April 2026, as its director of finance/CFO from 23 April 1998 to 29 June 2014 and as an 'independent' board member from 29 June 2014 to 20 April 2026; its profile also lists board seats at Prosus, Naspers, Media24, MIH (Mauritius), MIH BV, MIH Holdings and MultiChoice South Africa Holdings, board seats at MIH Holdings and Media24 ending 20 April 2026, and a former independent non-executive directorship of MultiChoice Group. Its dates differ by one day from Naspers's records, which give 24 April 1998 for his appointment and 30 June 2014 for his retirement as financial director, and its 'independent' label for his Naspers seat after 2014 is not used in the company's own description of him as a non-executive director of Naspers. Naspers's FY2026 report states that Pacak, who chaired the audit and risk committees, died on 20 April 2026, the date on which the aggregator ends his board seats; a news report of 21 April 2026 adds that Prosus issued a parallel statement and that Pacak, a chartered accountant, had previously been a director of MultiChoice and various other Naspers group companies. [src-006] [src-115] [src-055] [src-081] [src-052] [src-157] - Analysis: Basil (Vasileios) Sgourdos was group chief financial officer and financial director of Naspers from 2014 to 2024, and of Prosus from its 2019 listing. News reports of the company's statement of 8 August 2024 say that he worked at PricewaterhouseCoopers from 1989 to 1994, joined the group in 1994 as finance manager of the South African operations division of MultiChoice, held other global leadership positions, and was appointed group chief financial officer of Naspers in July 2014 and of Prosus from its listing in 2019; Naspers's annual financial statements for the year to 31 March 2014 describe him as 'presently CFO of Naspers Limited' and state that he would succeed Steve Pacak, who was to retire as financial director on 30 June 2014. On 8 August 2024 the Naspers and Prosus boards announced on SENS, as reported that day, that Sgourdos would retire as group CFO and financial director of both companies with effect from 30 November 2024, after 29 years; chair Koos Bekker thanked him, and the companies said their human resources, remuneration and nomination committees would begin the search for a successor. At the 22 August 2024 annual general meeting, chief executive Fabricio Bloisi acknowledged Sgourdos's decision to step down in November 2024. [src-122] [src-158] [src-052] [src-041] [src-151] - Analysis: A market-data aggregator's profile describes Vasileios Sgourdos as financial director and executive director of Naspers and Prosus and a member of the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants, and lists earlier roles as finance manager at MIH Holdings, chief financial officer of MIH BV, chief financial officer of United Broadcasting Corp. (until 31 December 2006), finance manager at Multichoice Africa and general manager, business development at Prosus. Its tables list him as a Naspers board member and director of finance/CFO from 30 June 2014 and as CFO of Naspers and Prosus until 29 November 2024, one day before the 30 November 2024 effective date given in the company's announcement as reported. The same aggregator lists him as a board member of MIH Russia Internet BV, which it describes as providing online gaming services, with a start date of 7 February 2011 and no end date; no company or registry record of this directorship, or of its end, was found in the retained record. [src-068] [src-055] [src-158] - Analysis: Nico Marais succeeded Sgourdos as chief financial officer of Naspers and Prosus. A news report of 2 December 2024 states that Naspers announced that day that Sgourdos had retired as group chief financial officer, that Marais would assume the role of interim CFO of Naspers and Prosus and that the process to finalise the role of group CFO had begun. Naspers states that he was appointed interim chief financial officer in December 2024 and on 29 April 2025 was appointed chief financial officer and financial director with immediate effect, and its FY2026 report gives 29 April 2025 as the effective date of his appointment as chief financial officer and financial director of Naspers Limited. A news report of 29 April 2025 states that the appointment had the unanimous support of both boards, that he joined the Naspers board as financial director immediately and that he was to join the Prosus board after its annual general meeting in August 2025, subject to shareholder approval. Naspers states that Marais has over 25 years of experience in financial management within the Naspers and Prosus group and previously served as General Manager of Finance, contributing to the listing of Prosus, the unwinding of the cross-holdings, the open-ended share repurchases and Prosus's debt capital market activities, and that he is a qualified chartered accountant; the news report of 29 April 2025 gives the same account and names the listing of Prosus on Euronext Amsterdam. A market-data aggregator lists him as director of finance/CFO of both Prosus N.V. and Naspers Limited from 29 December 2024, while its profile text says he has held the CFO and director roles at both companies 'from 2025'; the aggregator does not distinguish the interim from the permanent appointment, and the company's dates are the primary record. [src-003] [src-102] [src-041] [src-006] [src-066] ## South Africa chief executive: Phuthi Mahanyele-Dabengwa - Analysis: Naspers states that Phuthi Mahanyele-Dabengwa joined Naspers as South Africa CEO in July 2019; before that she co-founded Sigma Capital, an investment holding company formed in 2015, and was its executive chairperson, and she was chief executive of the investment holding company Shanduka Group from 2004 to 2015. Its leadership page titles her CEO Naspers and Executive Director. Naspers's FY2026 report states that she was appointed an executive director of Naspers Limited with effect from 1 April 2025, and a news report of 2 December 2024 states that Naspers had announced her appointment to its board effective 1 April 2025 and her nomination for appointment as an executive director of Prosus at its next annual general meeting, subject to shareholder approval. No record of the Prosus shareholder vote on her nomination was found in the retained record; a market-data aggregator lists her as a Prosus board member without a date. Naspers states that she is an independent director of Vodacom Group, serves on the advisory board of Stellenbosch University's business school and on the board of the UN Global Compact Network SA, and is a council member of the BRICS Business Council in South Africa. The SA BRICS Business Council's website lists her as a council member with the title SA Chief Executive Officer, Naspers Ltd, and states that she is an independent director of Vodacom and previously served on the boards of Discovery Insure and Gold Fields. [src-003] [src-006] [src-069] [src-041] [src-075] - Analysis: A market-data aggregator's profile of Phuti Mahanyele-Dabengwa lists her as founder of Sigma Capital and gives her current roles as executive director and CEO at Naspers starting in 2025, chairman of Bain & Company South Africa and of Gigajoule Africa, independent non-executive director of Vodacom Group since 2019 (board member from 31 December 2018 in its table), director of Optimum Coal Mine, director of HTN Towers Plc since 2013, director of Prosus, trustee of the Kagiso Shanduka Trust since 2017, and member of the BRICS Business Council (South Africa) and the UN Global Compact Local (South Africa); its table lists her as a Naspers board member from 31 March 2025, one day before the company's effective date of 1 April 2025. The Bain, Gigajoule, Optimum Coal and HTN Towers roles rest on the aggregator alone, and its 'CEO' label from 2025 does not distinguish her South Africa CEO role, held from July 2019, from the group chief executive role. The same aggregator lists former roles as non-executive deputy chairman of Pan African Resources Plc from 2012 to 2015, deputy chairman of the Cyril Ramaphosa Foundation and non-executive director of Sibanye UK Ltd. from 2013 to 2015; these dates are the aggregator's, and no company record of these roles was found in the retained record. Records also differ on when she was chief executive of Shanduka Group: Naspers's leadership page, repeated in a December 2024 news report and in a business council's online profile, gives 2004 to 2015, while the aggregator lists her as chief executive of Shanduka Group (Pty) Ltd. from 2010 to 2015 and separately lists an undated former role as managing director of Shanduka Energy (Pty) Ltd. The record does not explain the difference, and no record in the retained material reconciles the two periods. [src-069] [src-006] [src-003] [src-075] [src-041] ## Mark Sorour: chief investment officer, then non-executive director - Analysis: Naspers states that Mark Sorour joined the group in 1994, leading business development and corporate finance globally; after assignments in Hong Kong and Amsterdam he returned to Cape Town in 2002 as the group's chief investment officer, responsible for all global investment activities. Naspers's annual financial statements for the year to 31 March 2014 state that he was appointed an alternate to an executive director on 16 April 2014. In a SENS announcement dated 26 February 2018, Naspers stated that Sorour, executive director and group chief investment officer, had decided to retire after more than 20 years with the group, having led 'some of the most meaningful transactions for Naspers'; he would remain on the board as a non-executive director, subject to shareholder approval at the next annual general meeting, and would continue to serve as a non-executive director on the board of Mail.ru Group Limited. He retired from the group on 31 March 2018 and remained on the Naspers board as a non-executive director, which its leadership page describes as non-independent. A market-data aggregator's profile lists Mark Remon Sorour as being on the boards of Naspers, Mail.ru Group Ltd. and Prosus, as a board member of Naspers Limited from 1 March 2015 and of Prosus N.V. from 14 January 2015, and, in its table of former positions, as a board member of VK Company Limited, the later name of Mail.ru Group, with an end date of 3 March 2022. These dates are the aggregator's alone: the retained company records give 16 April 2014 for his appointment as an alternate to an executive director and do not give a date for his appointment as a full director, and no company or VK record of when his board seat there ended was found in the retained record, although Naspers's 2018 announcement confirms that he served on the Mail.ru Group board at that time. [src-003] [src-052] [src-101] [src-077] [src-139] ## Company secretary and an aggregator-only officer listing - Analysis: Naspers states that Lynelle Bagwandeen is Group Company Secretary and Head of Global Company Secretariat of Prosus and Naspers Limited and the information officer of Naspers Limited; she joined the group in August 2020 after serving as Group Company Secretary and General Counsel of Netcare Limited, on whose executive committee she sat from 2012. Her non-executive roles include a directorship of the Hospital Association of South Africa, and she is a past president of the Chartered Governance Institute of Southern Africa. A market-data aggregator lists her as corporate secretary of Naspers Limited from 24 August 2020 and of Prosus N.V. from 31 August 2021, as Group Secretary and General Counsel of Netcare from 2011 to 2020, as a director of the Hospital Association of South Africa and as director and senior vice president of the Chartered Governance Institute of Southern Africa from 2020; these are the aggregator's dates, while the company states that she joined in August 2020 and had been on Netcare's executive committee since 2012. [src-003] [src-080] - Analysis: A market-data aggregator's list of departures of key persons at Naspers includes Mario Shiliashki with the title chief executive officer from 30 September 2015 to 29 November 2018. The listing is the only record of the role: it does not state which group business he led, and no company record of the role was found in the retained record. [src-055] ## Titles in US SEC filings (2022 and 2023) - Analysis: Two filings with the US SEC record the officers' titles at two dates. On a Schedule 13G statement on Remitly Global, Inc. common stock dated 10 February 2022, Vasileios Sgourdos signed for both Prosus N.V. and Naspers Limited with the title 'Executive Director'. The schedules of directors in Amendment No. 1 to the Schedule 13D on Trip.com Group Limited, dated 10 February 2023, list Bob van Dijk as executive director and chief executive, and Vasileios (Basil) Sgourdos as financial director and executive director, of both Prosus N.V. and Naspers Limited; Jacobus Petrus (Koos) Bekker as non-executive chair of both companies; and Stephan Joseph Zbigniew (Steve) Pacak, Mark Remon Sorour and Jacobus du Toit (Cobus) Stofberg as non-executive directors of both. [src-005] [src-022] ## Sources - [src-006] Company statement source · src-006 - [src-052] Company statement source · src-052 - [src-115] Media source · src-115 - [src-157] Naspers Limited Form 6-K for October 2004 (annual report for the year ended 31 March 2004), U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (EDGAR), 2004-10 - [src-055] Other source · src-055 - [src-081] Other source · src-081 - [src-122] Media source · src-122 - [src-158] Media source · src-158 - [src-041] Media source · src-041 - [src-151] Company statement source · src-151 - [src-068] Other source · src-068 - [src-003] Company statement source · src-003 - [src-102] Media source · src-102 - [src-066] Other source · src-066 - [src-069] Other source · src-069 - [src-075] Other source · src-075 - [src-101] Company statement source · src-101 - [src-077] Other source · src-077 - [src-139] Media source · src-139 - [src-080] Other source · src-080 - [src-005] Schedule 13G on Remitly Global, Inc. filed by PayU Fintech Investments B.V., Prosus N.V. and Naspers Limited, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (EDGAR), 2022-02 - [src-022] Schedule 13D Amendment No. 1 on Trip.com Group Limited filed by Prosus N.V., Naspers Limited and subsidiaries (event date 10 February 2023), U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (EDGAR), 2023-02