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Africa’s Billionaire List Grows with Car-Tracking Tycoon Zak Calisto

Nigerian manufacturers protest banks' handling of dollar exchange issues.

Africa has welcomed a new dollar billionaire—Zak Calisto, the founder and CEO of Karooooo Ltd., a vehicle tracking and fleet management firm formerly known as Cartrack. The company’s addition of AI-powered services led to rapid subscription growth, driving a surge in earnings and boosting Calisto’s net worth. Calisto owns a two-thirds stake in the company. Karooooo has a customer base of 2.3 million, mostly in South Africa, reflecting its strong local presence. However, the company moved its headquarters to Singapore in 2020, in a bid to expand its presence to Asian markets. Calisto’s belief that there is potential for faster growth explains the decision. So far, the Portugal-born South African billionaire’s decisions have paid dividends, seeing him join the very exclusive list of African billionaires.

Business Insider Africa

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