Ghost Stories
Ghost Stories #88: Cell C – more than just an MVNO engine
Cell C has been on quite the adventure in its efforts to carve out a sustainable competitive position. Cell C has created a profitable business model that goes well beyond the MVNO operations that the market tends to focus on. In this podcast, CEO Jorge Mendes joined me to explain Cell C's business and how they plan to win across key verticals.
Ghost Stories
Ghost Stories #87: Lessons from 2025 – discipline over drama
As we look back on a fascinating year in the markets, Nico Katzke (Head of Portfolio Solutions at Satrix) delivered a fantastic mix of insights on this podcast that can be applied to your strategy in 2026 and beyond. From being careful not to learn the wrong lessons through to choosing simplicity over complexity, there's a lot of great stuff in here to get you ready for another year in the markets.
Ghost Stories
Ghost Stories #86: The “always-on” mentality at Sirius Real Estate
Sirius Real Estate is a great example of a JSE-listed property fund that gives local investors a chance to participate in offshore markets. With a strategy focused on the UK and Germany, Sirius follows an “always-on” mentality to the opportunities in those markets. To understand more about the strategy of the fund and how they win in these markets, I was joined by a full house of CEO Andrew Coombs, CFO Chris Bowman and CIO Tariq Khader. Get ready to learn all about Sirius and the opportunities for this fund.
Ghost Stories
Ghost Stories #85: Why DIY investing and advice belong together
DIY investing is all the rage and certainly has a place in the market, but so does financial advice. After all, you might love decorating a home, but wouldn’t you still use an architect to design it properly? Kapil Joshi of Momentum Wealth joined me to discuss a best-of-both-worlds approach to DIY investing and financial planning.
Ghost Stories
Ghost Stories #84: Assurance and trust – the route to wider blockchain adoption
A decade ago, barely anyone you knew would even have heard of Bitcoin and cryptocurrency, let alone blockchain technology. But today, the tokenisation of digital assets is so important that regulators around the world are paying increasing attention to it. Dr Wiehann Olivier of Forvis Mazars joined me for insights into the evolution of cryptocurrency from the initial Bitcoin years through to stablecoins and adoption by leading institutions.
Ghost Stories
Ghost Stories #83: Winners vs. missed opportunities in 2025 – and finance tips for entrepreneurs
Duma Mxenge (Head of Business and Market Development at Satrix) joined me right at the start of the year to talk about some of the things we would be looking out for in the markets this year. With the benefit of hindsight, we could now dig into some of our winners, overall surprises and missed opportunities in 2025. We also took the opportunity to talk about the nuances for entrepreneurs when it comes to personal financial management.
Ghost Stories
Ghost Stories #82: WeBuyCars – from dealer revolution to digital evolution
WeBuyCars is an excellent example of a disruptor in the South African market, having completely changed the way people buy and especially sell their vehicles. As a sign of just how valuable the data and technology systems are, WeBuyCars has announced that Chief Digital Officer Wynand Beukes will also take the role of Deputy CEO as part of succession planning at the group. CEO Faan van der Walt isn't going anywhere just yet though - he still has plenty of energy to give the group. Both Faan and Wynand joined me to discuss the business and the road ahead.
Ghost Stories
Ghost Stories #81: Lesaka Technologies – disrupting through distribution to build a fintech giant
With a growth strategy that is grounded firmly in the belief that Southern Africa offers one of the most exciting opportunities in the world today, Lesaka Technologies is executing from a tried-and-tested playbook of disruption in the fintech space. To explain the opportunity and how Lesaka's business model is built to win, Executive Chairman Ali Mazanderani joined me on this podcast.
Ghost Stories
Ghost Stories #80: Taming the herd – how to navigate bubbles, biases and big market moves
Kingsley Williams is the Chief Investment Officer at Satrix, which means he has built his career around being a student of the markets. He started working right before the dot com bubble, so Kingsley has seen exactly what happens when you have herd mentality in the markets.
Bubbles. Biases. Big market moves and the way they make people behave - it's all here in this great conversation around how to stay sane in a market that is driven by emotion, and one of the most dangerous human traits of all: greed.
Ghost Stories
Ghost Stories #79: Fintech meets frontier markets – now on the JSE
Optasia is listing on the JSE, which means that South African investors will have the opportunity to invest in this exciting fintech business. With a proprietary platform and extensive relationships across numerous emerging and frontier markets, Optasia builds bridges between financial institutions and traditionally unbanked consumers seeking airtime credit and microfinance solutions. To explain how the business works, Salvador Anglada (CEO, Optasia) joined me for this detailed discussion.
Ghost Stories
Ghost Stories #78: Buying a house? Buy smarter with data
We all need somewhere to live, but that doesn't mean that buying property should be the default decision. Most of all, it doesn't mean that buying any property at any price is sensible. Data-led decision making is crucial when buying a home, especially in South Africa where house prices don't automatically go up. Hayley Ivins-Downes of Lightstone Property joined me to discuss the facts around property values and trends in South Africa.

