KAGISO TISO HOLDINGS: Proven Peerless Investment Performance

With a legacy that can trace its origins back to 1993, Sandton-based Kagiso Tiso Holdings (KTH) was borne of a merger between Kagiso Trust Investments (KTI) and Tiso Group in 2011, creating a sizeable investment company of “critical mass”, according to KTH, with access to larger transactions and increased investment portfolio diversification. CEO Paballo Makosholo was appointed in 2020, joining from Kagiso Capital and bringing more than 17 years’ experience at executive and board level.

“Today,” the company says, “we are a leading black-owned and managed investment holding company which has created long-term sustainable value for shareholders. KTH has a strong and diversified asset portfolio comprising market-leading companies in the media, financial, education, and technology sectors, among others.”

PACKED PORTFOLIO

This portfolio is replete with some of the biggest names in their respective fields, and includes integrated facilities management giant Servest and Me Cure Healthcare, one of the leading human therapeutics company in West Africa’s pharmaceutical segment providing innovative healthcare solutions with the power to restore health and save lives.

Financial services also feature prominently in the KTH suite, not least in the form of Momentum Metropolitan, one of the largest long-term insurance companies in South Africa with over 140 branches throughout the country, as well as centres of service in Namibia, Botswana, Kenya, Ghana, Lesotho and eSwatini. INCA Portfolio Managers (IPM), meanwhile, is a niche portfolio management and advisory services company with more than 25 years of experience in the municipal sector.

One of KTH’s most recent, and most significant, acquisitions has been a majority stake in Futurewise, a digital-first education financial services provider and licensed insurer whose purpose is to guarantee a prosperous future through access to quality education. “Dedicated to establishing educational attainment and financial inclusion, we offer innovative solutions tailored to families’ needs,” Futurewise summarises.

Today wholly-owned by KTH, it is Kagiso Media (KM) and the brands falling under its umbrella that is arguably the standout in a packed KTH roster, now the largest black-owned media corporation in South Africa formed in 1997 by Kagiso Trust Investments to manage its media portfolio which, at the time, included industry leaders in broadcast media, specialist publishing, and exhibitions and events companies. 

“Our acquisition of all of the shares of Kagiso Media represented a significant milestone for transformation on the South African landscape,” KTH expands, with its core interests today spanning new media, content production, specialised publishing, research, radio broadcasting and television. “KM’s heritage stems from one of the oldest black-led organisations, namely Kagiso Trust,” the company details, “whose aim, since inception, is to channel funds to uplift and empower disadvantaged communities.”

The group’s interests, KM goes on, include controlling investments in East Coast Radio (ECR), one of KwaZulu-Natal’s top commercial radio stations, and Jacaranda FM, one the biggest independent radio stations in South Africa, as well as strategic stakes in OFM, Heart, Gagasi, along with a substantial economic interest in Kaya FM. Furthermore, KM has a controlling interest in Mediamark a specialist media sales and solutions company, while Urban Brew Studios is a leading facilities provider known as a bastion of creativity when it comes to entertaining content.

EXPLICIT VISION

“Our mission is to continuously deliver innovative media and information solutions that facilitate beneficial human connection,” says this media monolith. “The KM purpose is to develop a mix of cash generative and growth media assets that deliver attractive net returns that exceed expectations. Our assets are leading companies with good growth opportunities.”

KTH’s current portfolio of investments comprises market-leading companies across key sectors, and these are, generally, high-growth or cash generative and meet strict investment criteria aligned with KTH’s own core values and generating market-related returns. “Our values are at the core of our business philosophy and frame the way we conduct our business,” KTH stipulates.

“Two vital and inter-related principles of our business philosophy differentiate KTH as we strive to become a pan-African investment champion,” summarises this company of endless ambition and prospect. “The first is our commercial approach, defined by our desire to be long-term shareholders who play an active and influential role in the strategic direction and sustainability of the companies in which we invest. The second is to be recognised as a company defined by its intention to create social value in the markets in which we operate.

“Our vision is explicit in defining our strategic approach and our ambition to become a leading black-owned investment company.”