Naspers has announced a number of changes to its board of directors reflecting the rapid expansion of its subsidiary MIH Holdings, which now accounts for most of the group’s market value, and the relative decline in the contribution from its traditional print assets.
In a statement to shareholders, the media, pay-television and Internet giant says large overlaps now exist between the activities of the MIH and Naspers boards and, as a result, it had decided to reconfigure the the main board.
Lourens Jonker, Neil van Heerden and Hein Willemse have resigned as Naspers directors. In view of their “print media expertise, built up over many years”, the three have been invited to join the board of Media24, which holds the group’s magazine and newspaper assets.
Meanwhile, Craig Enenstein, Don Eriksson, Roberto Oliveira de Lima, Yuanhe Ma and Cobus Stofberg have been appointed as directors of Naspers. Most previously served on the board of MIH.
Enenstein is CEO of Corridor Capital, a Los Angeles-based private equity fund, who has experience in “developing and driving growth strategies, performing operational improvements and facilitating highly complex strategic consortia investments”, Naspers says in the statement.
Eriksson, a chartered accountant, is chair of Oakleaf Insurance Company, Insurance Outsourcing Managers Holdings and Renasa Insurance and is a former trustee and current member of the audit and risk committees of Discovery Health Medical Scheme.
De Lima is a director of Telefonica Brasil, among other companies, and has a “wealth of experience in the telecommunications sector where he was CEO of the leading mobile telecommunication company in South America, Vivo SA”.
Ma worked in various positions in China’s Administration of Radio, Film and Television for more than 30 years, before retiring from his post as head of the Hong Kong office in March 2002.
Stofberg is a founder member of M-Net and served as CEO of the MIH group from 1997 to 2011.
Naspers says its board now comprises 15 directors, with Ton Vosloo as chair, Koos Bekker as CEO and Steve Pacak as chief financial officer. — (c) 2013 NewsCentral Media
