Business

The South African man paid over R227 million to manage a billionaire’s investment company

Malcolm Libera

 ·19 Jul 2026

Jannie Durand, CEO of Remgro, has been paid R227.625 million since he was appointed to oversee South African billionaire Johann Rupert’s investment company. 

Durand was appointed as CEO on 7 May 2012. He oversees the day-to-day management of the investment group chaired by South Africa’s richest man, Johann Rupert.

Remgro is one of South Africa’s oldest and most influential companies. It started in 1948, when Anton Rupert established the Rembrandt Group as a tobacco business.

The company expanded rapidly over the following decades into wine, spirits and international markets before listing on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange in 1956.

During the 1990s and early 2000s, Johann Rupert restructured the business, creating three separate companies.

Richemont became the family’s international luxury goods business, Reinet became a Luxembourg-based investment vehicle, and Remgro evolved into a diversified South African investment company.

Today, Remgro holds interests in a broad range of businesses, including Mediclinic, OUTsurance, Discovery, FirstRand, RCL Foods, Rainbow Chicken, eMedia, Vumatel, Seacom, DFA, TotalEnergies and Heineken Beverages.

It also has several social impact investments, including the Blue Bulls, the Stellenbosch Academy of Sport, and the Stellenbosch Football Club.

As CEO, Durand is responsible for managing a portfolio worth well over R100 billion and overseeing major corporate transactions, including Remgro’s acquisition of Mediclinic Southern Africa.

While Rupert remains the company’s active chairman, Durand is responsible for implementing the group’s strategy and managing its investments.

His remuneration has fluctuated considerably over the past 14 years. His first year as CEO was only a partial year, while significant increases to his guaranteed salary followed in 2013 and 2014. 

Remgro said these were “once-off adjustments” reflecting his increased responsibilities after becoming CEO, and to bring his remuneration to a “market-related level”.

The annual reports also highlighted occasions where Durand voluntarily declined salary increases. 

In 2018, he turned down a 7% pay rise and requested that the equivalent amount be redirected to Remgro’s corporate social investment budget for local initiatives.

He repeated a similar decision in 2019 and declined part of an approved salary increase so the funds could again support community projects.

Good news for investors

The Covid-19 pandemic also had a noticeable impact on executive pay. Durand and other executives accepted a 30% salary reduction during April, May and June 2020.

The following year, the remuneration committee approved no salary increase for executive directors because of the economic environment.

His long-term incentives were also heavily affected during this period. Remgro’s reports show that no long-term incentive payouts were made between 2019 and 2021 because the company’s share awards were “underwater”.

This meant that the share price was below the award price, and no new awards were granted during the pandemic.

As markets recovered, Durand’s remuneration increased considerably. His largest pay packages came in 2022 and 2023 after historical share awards regained value.

In 2023 alone, long-term incentives contributed R23.4 million after performance conditions linked to shareholder returns were met.

Rather than providing subjective assessments of Durand’s leadership, Remgro’s annual reports explain that executive remuneration is based on “the executive’s level of responsibility, his/her overall performance and the achievement of specific agreed objectives”.

The reports also noted that long-term incentives “only render value if stretching performance conditions are met”, directly linking executive rewards to shareholder returns.

Durand’s tenure has coincided with another strong period for Remgro. The group’s latest interim results showed headline earnings rising nearly 40% to R5.1 billion for the six months to 31 December 2025.

Its interim dividend increased by more than 80% to 173 cents per share after the company reported strong operating performances across its core portfolio and continued progress in executing its strategic objectives despite ongoing global geopolitical and economic uncertainty.

Here is the remuneration data for CEO Jannie Durand, including both his fixed pay and long-term incentives, from his appointment in May 2012 to 2025.