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Key Points
- Stofberg’s Naspers stake is valued at $114.4 million, placing him among the wealthiest individual investors on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange.
- He co-founded MultiChoice and led DStv’s expansion, helping build one of Africa’s most dominant media platforms.
- Stofberg also holds $68.4 million in Prosus shares, bringing his combined tech investments to nearly $183 million.
Jacobus “Cobus” Stofberg is not a name that makes headlines often—and that’s no accident. Known for staying out of the spotlight, he’s spent nearly four decades helping to build some of Africa’s most influential companies from behind the scenes.
A founding member of MultiChoice Group, the company behind DStv, and a longtime director at Naspers, Africa’s most valuable company, Cobus Stofberg has quietly shaped the media and tech landscape across the continent. While many chased the clout, he focused on the work—building a business legacy rooted in clear thinking, steady leadership, and a belief in Africa’s potential.
Today, Stofberg holds a stake worth $114.4 million in Naspers, the Cape Town-based tech investment giant. The company is not only Africa’s most valuable by market capitalization but also the only one on the continent valued at more than $50 billion. That level of success didn’t happen overnight. It is the result of decades of decisions—some big, some quiet—and a consistent commitment to ideas and platforms built by and for Africans.
From accounting to Africa’s media boom
Born and educated in South Africa, Stofberg’s early years were marked by academic diligence. He earned undergraduate degrees from both the University of South Africa and Stellenbosch University, later completing a graduate degree from Stellenbosch as well.
With his qualification as a chartered accountant, he joined Coopers & Lybrand—now PwC—as a partner. It was there that he sharpened the financial skills and strategic discipline that would later guide him through some of Africa’s most significant corporate boardrooms.
His career took a defining turn in 1985 when he became part of the founding team at M-Net, a pay-TV startup that would eventually grow into MultiChoice Group. The idea was bold at the time, but Stofberg and his team believed there was an audience ready for African-produced content. They were right. Over the years, MultiChoice, through its DStv platform, became a fixture in homes across Sub-Saharan Africa.
From 1997 to 2011, as CEO, Stofberg oversaw a period of rapid expansion. His leadership not only helped solidify MultiChoice as a household name but also elevated his role within Naspers, the company that had backed the media group from the beginning.
Stofberg’s Naspers shares worth $114 million
Even after stepping down as chief executive, Stofberg continued to wield significant influence. He sits as a non-independent, non-executive director on the board of Naspers and also serves on the board of its Amsterdam-listed arm, Prosus, where he is an Independent Non-Executive Director. His corporate experience includes prior tenures as CEO of MIH Holdings and various executive roles within M-Net Holdings.
Yet it is not just his executive roles that define Stofberg—it is the wealth that came from betting long on the ecosystem he helped build. According to recent corporate filings and annual results reviewed by Billionaires.Africa, Stofberg owns 372,916 listed Naspers N ordinary shares, equivalent to a 0.227 percent stake in the group.
With Naspers commanding a market capitalization of R898.79 billion ($50.4 billion), this holding is currently valued at $114.4 million. On the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, this places him among the wealthiest individual investors—though he has largely remained a behind-the-scenes figure.
The story doesn’t end there. Stofberg also holds a significant stake in Prosus, the Amsterdam-listed tech investment firm spun out of Naspers in 2019. His 1,215,898 Prosus ordinary shares N are valued at $68.4 million. Combined, his stakes in Naspers and Prosus total $182.9 million, cementing his status not just as a successful businessman but as one of the continent’s quietest financial heavyweights.
Loyalty turned into lasting wealth
In a world where success is often loud, measured by viral headlines and constant social media presence, Cobus Stofberg stands apart. He has built his wealth not through hype or fast exits but through years of steady leadership and quiet commitment to the businesses he helped shape. His fortune reflects a journey inside two of Africa’s top media and technology companies—places where he didn’t just pass through but stayed, invested, and helped grow from the inside.
While many entrepreneurs burn bright and move on, Stofberg stayed the course. His story isn’t built on quick wins but on decades of careful decisions, strategic patience, and loyalty to a vision bigger than himself. Today, that approach has paid off—not just in boardroom influence but in the value of the equity he holds. Without fanfare or headlines, he has managed to turn a deep belief in Africa’s digital future into lasting wealth.
