👨🏿‍🚀TechCabal Daily – MTN executives get $9.5M in shares

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MTN Group, Africa’s largest telecom operator, has awarded roughly R160 million ($9.5 million) in shares to its top executives under its Performance Share Plan, according to a regulatory filing released after Tuesday’s market close. 

State of play: It highlights how the company rewards performance at the highest level. The allocations, part of MTN’s Performance Share Plan, were granted on March 31, 2026, and vest over three years through December 2028.

Ralph Mupita, MTN Group CEO, received the largest individual allocation—shares worth almost R40 million ($2.4 million). Ferdinand Moolman, CEO of MTN South Africa, received shares valued at R20.1 million ($1.2 million), while Karl Toriola, MTN Nigeria CEO and Vice President of Francophone Africa, received shares valued at R5.5 million ($326,000). Stephen Blewett, CEO of MTN Ghana, the subsidiary that recorded the group’s highest average revenue per user (ARPU) in 2025, was awarded shares worth R4.1 million ($243,000). Other executives and company secretaries received smaller allocations, ranging from R1.9 million ($113,000) to R23 million ($1.4 million).

The awards are performance-linked. MTN evaluates executives against four criteria: shareholder returns, free cash flow, return on equity (ROE), and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) targets, including broadband coverage, diversity, and net-zero commitments. Achieving these targets unlocks the full value of the shares, while underperformance reduces the payout.

For executives, it’s both a reward and a retention tool, linking pay directly to company performance. It signals to investors that MTN is aligning leadership incentives with long-term growth and accountability. In a competitive African telecom market, these high-value, performance-linked share awards demonstrate how MTN motivates results and keeps its top executives focused on delivering shareholder value.

After 17 years running Paga Nigeria, Tayo Oviosu is stepping into a new role: Group CEO. The shift is part of a broader leadership reshuffle as the Nigerian fintech expands its focus beyond domestic payments into crypto, stablecoins, and AI.

Opeyemi Oyinloye, the company’s former general manager of business operations, will take over as acting CEO of Paga Nigeria, pending regulatory approval. In his new group role, Oviosu will lead Paga Labs, overseeing the company’s bets on emerging technologies and new market entry. Oyinloye will report to the Paga Nigeria board, which Oviosu will chair.

Jay Alabraba, Paga’s co-founder and director of business development, will also transition to group director of special projects with an initial focus on credit and lending services and supporting Oviosu on expansion. 

State of play: The reshuffle reflects how much Paga has grown. The company processed ₦17.1 trillion ($12 billion) in transaction value in 2025 and launched US banking services through a partnership with Regent Bank in September 2025. In January 2026, it became PayPal’s local partner in Nigeria. Oviosu’s view is straightforward: Paga has grown past the stage where the founder needs to be in everything.

Executive transitions at African fintechs are becoming more common. Earlier this year, South Africa’s TymeBank appointed Cheslyn Jacobs, previously its chief commercial officer, as CEO, replacing Karl Westvig, who stepped down as part of a planned transition but remains with TymeBank in an advisory capacity. Paga is the latest fintech to make that call at the top.

Chinese e-commerce platform, Temu, now includes value-added tax (VAT) and import duty charges directly at checkout for South African users. Previously, shoppers would place an order, feel good about the price, and only later—between dispatch and delivery—get a prompt to pay customs charges. The final cost often arrived in parts. Now, it appears upfront.

This is Temu adjusting to pressure: South Africa is tightening how imports are taxed, especially low-value goods that once slipped through with lighter duties. For years, parcels under R500 ($29.59) attracted a flat 20% duty and no VAT, creating a loophole that international sellers leveraged. That window is now closing: the South African Revenue Service (SARS), the country’s tax authority, moves to tighten import rules.

Temu is taking control of the process: It is centralising tax calculation in the same way Amazon has done for years, simplifying filing for users, and ensuring Temu stays on the right side of a changing system.

Why this matters: Temu’s edge has always been low prices sourced from Chinese sellers, but hidden or ambiguous costs, often linked back to Temu’s alleged underhanded tactics, have been a sore spot for customers. South African regulators are pushing for transparent prices, and Temu has to key into this new mandate or risk a regulatory witch-hunt. 

If global e-commerce platforms in markets like South Africa are going to keep growing under tighter rules, they can’t run on hidden charges; they have to be upfront.

Written by: Emmanuel Nwosu and Opeyemi Kareem

Edited by: Emmanuel Nwosu