Naspers, the largest African company by market capitalisation, has announced that CEO Bob van Dijk will leave his position effective immediately. Van Dijk will assume a consultancy role until 30 September 2024 to assist with transitioning into new management.
Naspers CEO Bob van Dijk has resigned from the helm of Africa’s largest company by market capitalisation after ten years. Van Dijk will also step down as CEO of Prosus, a subsidiary of Naspers focused on making tech investments across the globe and whose portfolio companies include Udemy, Stack overflow, Tencent, SimilarWeb and SkillsSoft. Van Dijk and Naspers did not share any reason for the sudden departure.
“The Boards of Prosus and Naspers want to thank Bob for his leadership over a full decade,” said Koos Bekker, Naspers chair this morning. “During this time, substantial businesses were established in Classifieds, Food Delivery and Payments, while we also entered several new fields. We appreciate Bob’s contributions and wish him much success with his future career.”
Van Dijk became CEO of Naspers in 2014, succeeding Koos Bekker. He was named CEO of Prosus in 2019 after the company went public. “He established the group as a leading global consumer internet company, creating significant value for shareholders. The boards sincerely thank Bob for his leadership and contribution,” Naspers and Prosus added.
New management
In the interim, Van Dijk will be succeeded by the group’s Chief Investment Officer Ervin Tu. Tu is credited with bringing the company’s consolidated e-commerce portfolio to profitability while maintaining growth and leading capital allocation across the Group.
On the markets, despite an early rally of Naspers stock following the news, the stock price is down 1% on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. Prosus, whose primary listing is on the Amsterdam Stock Exchange, also saw similar fortunes and was down less than a percentage following the announcement.
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