By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The Public Investment Corporation’s (PIC’s) board has welcomed the confirmation, by Cabinet, of appointment of Patrick Dlamini as the State-owned asset manager’s new CEO.
Dlamini will take his role effective 1 June 2025.
The decision, confirmed by Cabinet on 14 May, comes after a seven-month global search, the PIC board noted in a statement on Thursday.
Dlamini was the former CEO of the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA), where he served for over a decade. He has three decades of senior management experience at various corporations.
Dlamini holds a Master of Science in Global Finance from New York University’s Stern School of Business and a Bachelor of Commerce in Accounting and Economics from the University of Durban-Westville.
He has also completed advanced executive and financial programmes at Wits University, the Kellogg School of Management, and Queen’s University in Canada.
Dlamini will succeed outgoing CEO Abel Sithole, who is retiring at the end of his five-year term. Sithole was appointed at a time when the PIC was under intense scrutiny following the Mpati Commission of Inquiry, which uncovered governance and investment management failures.
According to David Masondo, PIC board chair and deputy minister of finance, Dlamini’s expertise in leading complex turnarounds, among other things, positions him to advance the PIC’s investment mandate.
As a “turnaround specialist” at other state-owned entities, with extensive experience in development finance and investment management, Dlamini, working with management, will be expected to apply such expertise to address the immediate concerns confronting the PIC, specifically in its unlisted portfolio, Masondo adds.
He is also expected to bolster internal governance structures and reinforce ethical practices across the organisation.
“The board is confident that his principled commitment to corporate governance will strengthen our response to embed ethics, accountability, and integrity across all PIC business functions,” Masondo notes.
The PIC board thanked Sithole for his “invaluable contribution” to stabilising the organisation and restoring ethical leadership.
“He ensured that the recommendations of the Mpati Commission were implemented, that permanent appointments were made to crucial executive positions, and that internal governance structures were reconfigured and strengthened.”
Under his leadership, the PIC has grown its assets under management to over R3 trillion by September 2024.
Masondo points out that Sithole continues to enjoy the full support of the PIC board and has committed to a seamless handover to his successor.