• MultiChoice has announced that Imtiaz Patel will step down as Chair of the Board effective 31st March 2024.
• He will be replaced by existing independent board member Elias Masilela.
• Masilela is also the Chair of the Sanlam Board of Directors.

There is some movement happening within the MultiChoice Board of Directors, with the Chairperson of the Board announcing they will be stepping down.

That Chairperson is Imtiaz Patel and he will no longer be the Chair as of 31st March 2024. Taking his place as Chair will be Elias Masilela. However, Patel won’t be gone entirely. According to a SENS announcement, Patel will continue to consult for Showmax, SuperSport, and other areas of MultiChoice through October 2028.

“The Board expresses its gratitude to Mr Patel for his invaluable contributions to the Group and his exceptional leadership over the years and is delighted that he will continue to play an active role,” the announcement reads.

As for Masilela, he will take the role of Chair effective 1st April 2024. He is currently an independent member of the board who MultiChoice says is an excellent and experienced successor. The incoming Chairperson is also the Chair of the Sanlam Board of Directors and has previously served on the board of the South African Reserve Bank and the Government Employee Pension Fund.

The change comes during a particularly rough patch for MultiChoice. In its latest financial report, the company claimed it lost R2.9 billion attributed to the struggles the company faced in South Africa brought about by loadshedding and a loss of subscribers.

The involvement of Patel in Showmax and SuperSport, however, is notable given MultiChoice’s announcement earlier this year. Together with NBCUniversal, MultiChoice will establish a new company that will jointly manage Showmax. Details about this partnership haven’t been fully disclosed yet but we expect to see a more robust streaming offering that goes toe-to-toe with the likes of Netflix.