He was once told to leave school and not come back. Today, Lincoln Mali cannot stop collecting trophies.

The CEO of Lesaka Technologies is in the middle of an extraordinary streak of recognition that began in late 2025 and shows no sign of slowing. In November, Mali was named All Africa Business Leader of the Year at the 13th annual All Africa Business Leaders Awards (AABLA), hosted in partnership with CNBC Africa at the Sandton Convention Centre. The jury cited him as a leader who exemplifies visionary African leadership, having consistently driven growth, innovation and impact across the financial services sector.

That award, it turns out, was only the beginning.

In the months since, Mali has added an Inspirational Leader of the Year title at the 2026 Future of Leadership Awards in Johannesburg, a Leadership and Legacy Award from the Urban College of Boston and an honorary degree in humanities conferred at the college’s 2026 commencement ceremony – where he was also invited to deliver the keynote address.

The Massachusetts Senate also presented Lincoln with an Official Citation, recognising his continued contributions to the financial services sector and his global impact.

In addition, the City of Boston, through the office of mayor Michelle Wu, awarded Lincoln a Certificate of Recognition for his contributions to education, philanthropy, youth development and community empowerment.

Leadership with purpose

These honours reflect values that have guided Lincoln throughout his career: leadership with purpose, service to others and a belief that sustainable progress is achieved when individuals and communities are empowered to realise their full potential.

In a fitting symbol of where his priorities sit, his children accepted the Johannesburg award on his behalf while he was being honoured in Boston on the same evening.

What makes the run resonate is the distance Mali has travelled to reach it. By his own account, he was expelled from Ithembelihle High School and later received a suspended expulsion from Rhodes University. Growing up in a Gqeberha township under apartheid, he was, as he puts it, the kind of young man the system was built to forget – at one point in and out of jail and lumped in with a so-called “lost generation”.

Read: How fintech is transforming informal trade in South Africa

In his Boston commencement address, titled “The Power of Our Shared Humanity”, Mali reflected that the same boy once shown the door by one institution was now being handed a microphone at another. He credited a school principal who took him in when no other school would, along with teachers, parents and strangers who refused to give up on him.

From left, ⁠⁠Tom O’Brien, chair, foundation committee, Urban College of Boston; Dr Yves Salomon-Fernández, president, Urban College of Boston; Dr Lee Pelton, president and CEO, The Boston Foundation; Denella J Clark, president and CEO of the Boston Arts Academy Foundation; Lincoln Mali, CEO, Lesaka Technologies; and Joan Becker, chair, board of trustees, Urban College of Boston

The recognition is not merely sentimental. It tracks a genuine business turnaround. Mali left a large financial institution after two decades to help rescue a struggling fintech, and the results have followed. Lesaka Technologies reported R2.5-billion in revenue and group adjusted Ebitda of R337 million in its most recent quarter, and Mali has noted the company has now met its profitability guidance for 15 consecutive quarters. The company is guiding towards group adjusted Ebitda of between R1.25-billion and R1.35-billion for FY2026, with expectations of achieving positive net income for the first time.

Crucially for a leader who frames financial inclusion as his life’s work, Mali has been blunt that financial inclusion is not an act of charity – it’s sustainable business.

Awards as ‘an invitation to keep building’

Mali has been consistent in deflecting the spotlight. Accepting the AABLA honour, he insisted the award belonged to his entire team, and offered a line that has become something of a personal manifesto: “Awards are not the finish line; they are an invitation to keep building. Keep showing up. Keep choosing collaboration over competition.”

He has put that conviction into practice. Beyond the boardroom, Mali champions youth leadership development through the Lincoln Mali Leadership Foundation, established in 2022 with his wife, Sva Mali, running leadership mentoring programmes, community feeding schemes and sports development projects. The foundation’s Youth Leadership Summit, run with Henley Business School Africa, has drawn hundreds of young applicants since its 2023 launch, and a further summit is scheduled for June.

Read: Lesaka’s fintech platform deepens its reach in South Africa’s townships

In Boston, Mali announced he was committing the honours conferred on him, in full, to the foundation – because, as he told graduates, recognition that does not open doors for others is just a trophy gathering dust. For a man currently accumulating a great many trophies, it is a telling statement of intent.