Patrice Motsepe built his fortune by making sure ownership mattered. He is now applying that principle to every single person working at his digital bank.
GoTyme Bank, the digital lender majority-owned by Motsepe's African Rainbow Capital Investments, has introduced an employee share ownership programme that gives qualifying staff a direct stake in the business across all levels of the company. The scheme, valued at north of R100 million roughly 5.5 million, was disclosed by chief executive Cheslyn Jacobs at an event in Johannesburg on May 14 and extends to more than 95 of GoTyme's approximately 2,000-strong global workforce. Education sessions for staff on the mechanics and potential value of the scheme have already begun.
Jacobs was deliberate about how the move should be understood. This is not a retention play wrapped in share certificates. It's less about retention, actually, he said. We want our staff to behave like owners. This business still is in a hyper-growth phase, so we think this is going to make meaningful differences to our people's lives.
