The insurer’s board, chaired by former Finance Minister Trevor Manuel, disclosed his leave hours before the 174-year-old company’s annual meeting with shareholders in Johannesburg. Chief Operating Officer Iain Williamson will serve as acting CEO.
“The question is, what does this mean for Moyo’s future and if he were to leave would that mean a change in strategy,” said Bradley Preston, chief investment officer at Mergence Investment Managers, which owns Old Mutual shares.Old Mutual fell as much as 6% at the start of trade, paring that loss to 2.4% to 21.17 rand by 1:20 p.m. in Johannesburg. The company’s annual general meeting was scheduled to start at 2 p.m.
This isn’t the first time he’s figured in boardroom dramas. In 2016, while chairman at Vodacom Group Ltd., Moyo tried to buy a large stake in the mobile phone company through NMT, his investment vehicle, from Africa’s largest fund manager, Bloomberg previously reported. This deal was later scuppered.
Moyo, who trained as a chartered accountant at KPMG in Zimbabwe and then worked at Ernst & Young, joined Old Mutual in 1997 before moving to Alexander Forbes in 2005.
BEE is destined for the scrap heap..