Jannie Mouton is one of South Africa’s greatest success stories. After he was fired at 48, he started PSG and grew it into a financial powerhouse worth billions.
Johannes ‘Jannie’ Mouton was born in 1946 in Carnarvon, a small town in the Northern Cape surrounded by sheep farms.
After finishing school, he attended Stellenbosch University and completed a BCom Honours degree.
He started his career at PricewaterhouseCoopers, where he did his articles, and qualified as a chartered accountant in 1973.
Mouton co-founded the stockbroking firm, Senekal, Mouton & Kitshoff, with Johan Senekal and Jannie Kitshoff in 1982.
His life changed on 3 August 1995, at 48, when he was fired from Senekal, Mouton & Kitshoff, where he served as managing partner.
The drastic action resulted from different strategic views for the company. He wanted to turn the company into a financial giant, while the other partners disagreed.
“I wanted to turn it into an investment bank, list it to attract capital and institutional shareholders, but remain independent,” he explained.
In his book ‘And Then They Fired Me’, Mouton says getting fired was a turning point in his life that set him on a new course.
“I had to delve deep, think a lot, learn and also make mistakes to get where I am now,” Mouton wrote.
“With the wisdom of hindsight, I can now say that day in 1995 was a blessing in disguise. It was a life-changing occurrence that led to the founding of PSG.”
Mouton joined forces with Chris Otto to start PSG Group in November 1995. They had a dream of building a financial services conglomerate.
They bought 51% of a listed recruitment company, PAG, for R3.5 million. In 1997, they sold PAG Placements for R107 million and changed the holding company’s name to PSG Group.
They continued with various innovative transactions, always with the primary aim of creating shareholder value.
In the early 2000s, PSG Group’s model changed to resemble an investment holding company more closely.
● PSG created great South African companies
Over the years, PSG Group has contributed to building great businesses such as Capitec, PSG Konsult, and Curro.
Capitec is one of their biggest successes. Mouton and Otto saw the potential in microlending, held a banking license, and had cash.
Capitec founder Michiel le Roux said PSG and Mouton’s active involvement in the beginning years of Capitec was crucial to the bank’s success.
PSG held a large stake in Capitec Bank, which became one of its biggest successes. Capitec was listed for less than R1 per share. Today, it is worth over R3,100 per share.
In 2005, PSG acquired a 15% stake in the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) and became its largest shareholder.
Two years later, it joined forces with Sanlam and Santam to start a new direct insurance company, MiWay Insurance, in partnership with Rene Otto.
The company also strongly focused on education. It helped start the private school provider Curro and the higher education company Stadio.
During August 2020, PSG Group unbundled an effective 26.4% interest in the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE)-listed Capitec.
In September 2022, PSG Group restructured by way of indivisible transactions. It unbundled PSG Konsult, Curro, Kaap Agri, CA&S, and Stadio.
PSG Group repurchased all shares from existing shareholders for a cash consideration of R23.00 per share and was delisted from the JSE.
As an unlisted investment holding company, PSG Group continues to serve as an incubator to build businesses and provide good shareholder returns.
Mouton’s success was legendary. An investment of R100,000 on PSG’s first day in business grew to R390 million twenty-two years later if all dividends were reinvested.
● Mouton diagnosed with early-stage dementia
In May 2018, Mouton revealed that he had been diagnosed with early-stage dementia and would be stepping down as PSG chairman.
In a voluntary statement issued to PSG shareholders, Mouton said his short-term memory does not always function as it should.
“I sometimes forget people’s names, repeat myself, or may appear somewhat disoriented. This does not happen every day, but I cannot ignore it,” he said.
At the time, Mouton said he would stay on as non-executive chairman of the group, as was supported by excellent colleagues.
“PSG is my life, and I have dedicated myself to the company for the past 22 years. I am incredibly proud of the businesses we have created over the years,” he said.
“It includes Capitec, PSG Konsult, Curro, Zeder and all other investments for the future. There are so many opportunities that the PSG team is currently working on.”
“I am also proud of our ongoing contribution towards the South African economy. I still believe this country is filled with opportunity and very talented people.”
He said PSG Group has an outstanding team that looks after the investment portfolio and other business matters.
“I could not have asked for more in my life. I have incredible children and grandchildren. I am especially grateful to my wife, Deidré, for her incredible support,” he said.
In November 2018, after 23 years leading PSG, Mouton stepped down as non-executive chair and director.
Despite not being involved in running PSG any longer, Jannie Mouton & family have recently been added to Forbes’ real-time tracking of billionaires.
Mouton first appeared on the Forbes World’s Billionaires List in 2017 but has been absent since then.
However, as of March 2025, he has reemerged on Forbes’ radar as one of the richest people in the world.
According to Forbes’ real-time tracking of billionaires, Mouton has a net worth of $1.6 billion, which is around R29.2 billion.
https://businesstech.co.za/news/business/818695/the-man-who-was-fired-at-48-and-then-became-one-of-south-africas-richest-people/
Stay ahead with the latest updates! Join The ConclaveNG on WhatsApp and Telegram for real-time news alerts, breaking stories, and exclusive content delivered straight to your phone. Don’t miss a headline — subscribe now!
