New South African billionaire added to Forbes’ world rankings

Jannie Mouton & family has been added among South Africa’s dollar-billionaires on Forbes’ real-time tracking of billionaires.

Johannes “Jannie” Mouton is a South African businessman who founded the investment holding company PSG Group.

After obtaining a bachelor’s degree from Stellenbosch University, he started his career aged 22 as an articled clerk at PwC. He qualified as a chartered accountant in 1973.

Shortly after, He co-founded his first stockbroking business, Senekal, Mouton & Kitshoff, where he served as managing director.

However, his life took a turn when he was fired from Senekal, Mouton & Kitshoff in 1995, a moment he decided was a blessing in disguise.

This is because, within the very same year, he partnered with Chris Otto and started PSG Group in November.

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 more closely resemble that of an investment holding company.

Over the years, PSG Group has contributed to building great businesses such as PSG Konsult, Curro, and even Capitec—a company that has put another South African on Forbes’ billionaires list, Capitec founder Michiel le Roux.

Jannie Mouton stepped down as the non-executive chair and director of PSG Group and its subsidiaries, including PSG Financial Services and Zeder, with immediate effect in November 2018 due to medical reasons.

However, in the announcement of his stepping down, Mouton was described as a true legend who had been PSG Group’s founder and chairman for the past 23 years.

Fast-forward to 2025, and PSG Group continues to operate as an unlisted investment holding company with an investment portfolio worth more than R5 billion.

Its current investments operate across a diverse range of industries, including energy, education, retirement lifestyle villages, and automotive retail.

PSG Group invests predominantly in early-stage South African businesses with high growth potential and aims to build businesses alongside management.

PSG Group also employs more than 45,000 people, thereby contributing significantly to the fiscus through the payment of corporate and personal taxes.

Jannie Mouton added to Forbes’ worldwide billionaires list

Jannie 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 the 2024th richest person in the world.

According to Forbes’ real-time tracking of billionaires, Mouton has a net worth of $1.6 billion (R29.2 billion).

Mouton’s addition to Forbes’ list means that seven South Africans now rank among the world’s dollar-billionaires.

The other billionaires include Luxury goods mogul Johann Rupert, former diamond magnate Nicky Oppenheimer, media mogul Koos Bekker, mining boss Patrice Motsepe, Capitec founder Michiel le Roux, and consumer retail businessman Chrstoffel Wiese.

Rupert maintains his title as the richest South African and is the second richest person in Africa (behind Aliko Dangote of Nigeria).

His net worth of $13.8 billion (R252 billion) is due to his wide array of investments. As of March 2025, Rupert is also the only South African among the top 200 wealthiest individuals in the world, at 169.

Former diamond magnate Nicky Oppenheimer is among the world’s wealthiest 300, ranking 253 with an estimated net worth of $10.4 billion (R189 billion).

Naspers chairman Bekker ranks third among South Africans and 1,067 worldwide, with a net worth of $3.4 billion (R62 billion).

Africa’s first black billionaire, Motsepe, is next, with an estimated net worth of around $3.1 billion (R56.6 billion) and a global ranking of 1,170.

Capitec founder le Roux rounds out South Africa’s richest top five, ranked 1,501 in the world with a net worth of $2.3 billion (R42 billion).

Retail giant Wiese is ranked below Mouton at 2,098 globally, although his net worth is the same as that of the PSG founder, at $1.6 billion (R29.2 billion).