T. J. Strydom
19 highlights · 11 concepts · 15 entities · 2 cornerstones · 4 signatures
South African media and technology entrepreneur who built Naspers from a modest Afrikaans publishing company into a $50B+ global technology investment powerhouse, anchored by the century's best tech bet — a stake in China's Tencent.
South African media and technology entrepreneur who built Naspers from a modest Afrikaans publishing company into a $50B+ global technology investment powerhouse, anchored by the century's best tech bet — a stake in China's Tencent.
“During his tenure, Naspers made a number of bad investments, a few mediocre ones, a few good ones and one that shot the lights out. The stake Bekker and his team bought in 2001 in the Chinese technology firm Tencent outperformed everything else, and was one of the best technology investments of the twenty-first century.”
“A few years later, however, he did return to start a pay-TV company soon to be known as M-Net. When it became profitable, Bekker took the concept to Europe, where he stitched together a business that spanned more than a dozen countries on the continent, selling it for a tidy profit a few years later.”
“I don't want a fixed package, and you can fire me on 24 hours' notice. I want 3 per cent of the long-term value created above inflation.”
Bekker negotiating his compensation terms with Ton Vosloo upon becoming CEO of Naspers in 1997.
“Because you think as an owner, you don't think as an employee. So you don't say, I want to stay in a good hotel, or how could I improve my bonus? There is no bloody bonus.”
Bekker explaining the psychological shift that comes from having zero salary and pure equity upside.
“When you make the first few million euros, it's going to change your life totally. You can look after your parents, you can eat in any restaurant in the world, you can travel for a holiday ... it gives you liberty.”
Bekker reflecting on what wealth actually buys, and its diminishing marginal utility.
“Beyond a certain point, money is pretty pointless and certainly not worth devoting your life to.”
Bekker on the limits of wealth as a motivator.
“When the internet started, I completely underestimated it. Only by about 1997 did we realise, here is something really big.”
Bekker admitting his late recognition of the internet's transformative potential, which he then pursued aggressively as Naspers CEO.
Bekker admitted he completely underestimated the internet's significance until 1997, learning that paradigm shifts demand urgent re-evaluation rather than wait-and-see caution.
A portfolio of bad and mediocre bets is tolerable if the process allows for one transformational winner to emerge — the hit must be big enough to cover all the misses.
Why linked: Shares Tencent.
“‘I don’t want a fixed package, and you can fire me on 24 hours’ notice,’ Bekker told Vosloo. But he added: ‘I want 3 per cent of the long-term value created above inflation.’11”
“‘So I said, all right, I’ll come, but I don’t want a salary or a bonus or a car or a medical scheme or anything like that,’ Bekker told an interviewer later in life.8 The job on offer was Vosloo’s, as CEO of Naspers. The starting date was 1 October 1997.”
“‘From a personal point of view, the risk is high,’ he said in 2015. ‘Unless you’ve made some money early in life that can tide you over if things go wrong, you can actually land up in financial difficulties.’”
“His approach was a clever combination of reading the wind, throwing caution to the wind and embracing the winds of change.”
“‘Because you think as an owner, you don’t think as an employee,’ he commented later. ‘So you don’t say, I want to stay in a good hotel, or how could I improve my bonus? There is no bloody bonus.’”
“During his tenure, Naspers made a number of bad investments, a few mediocre ones, a few good ones and one that shot the lights out. The stake Bekker and his team bought in 2001 in the Chinese technology firm Tencent outperformed everything else, and was one of the best technology investments of the twenty-first century.”
“Bekker chose the latter. That year, he and his wife, Karen, bought Babylonstoren, an expansive estate in the Cape Winelands. The hundreds of millions he pocketed from the share sale came in handy – redeveloping a historic site into a world-class tourist destination does not come cheap.”
“‘When you make the first few million euros, it’s going to change your life totally. You can look after your parents, you can eat in any restaurant in the world, you can travel for a holiday ... it gives you liberty.’”
“A few years later, however, he did return to start a pay-TV company soon to be known as M-Net. When it became profitable, Bekker took the concept to Europe, where he stitched together a business that spanned more than a dozen countries on the continent, selling it for a tidy profit a few years later.”
“‘When the internet started, I completely underestimated it,’ he told an interviewer in 2016. ‘Only by about 1997 did we realise, here is something really big.’21 And by then, he was the CEO of a listed company with money to allocate to new ventures.”
“M-Net was only the first of the so-called M-group of companies he founded. The others – MIH, MTN and M-Web – each became what could have been a decent success story for any entrepreneur. Bekker took it to another level.”
“Ebbe Dommisse in an interview for the latter’s book Fortunes: The rise and rise of Afrikaner tycoons.6”
“‘So, we start on a certain day, and then there is a value, and then we measure it again after five years. And we say, if the value is only that, or only that plus inflation, then you take home nothing,’ went his conversation with Vosloo.16”
“When he retired as CEO seventeen years later, congratulations were certainly in order. Naspers had grown from its R6 billion market cap to more than R530 billion. And Bekker held nearly 16,4 million shares worth more than R1 000 each. An impressive haul, comfortably making him a dollar billionaire.”
“Gorilla in the Room: Koos Bekker and the rise and rise of Naspers,”
“‘The sole benefit to Mr Bekker consists of an offer made on the day before assuming duty, i.e. on 31 March 2008, of an option in terms of the rules of the Naspers Limited Share Trust to acquire 11 687 808 Naspers N ordinary shares, which, as before, equals 3 per cent of the company’s outstanding shares,’ the company announced.”
“‘So, the first million is very important, but then there is a diminishing return. Between 10 million euros and 100 million, nothing much happens. Between 100 million and 200 million, absolutely nothing happens, right?’”
“‘Beyond a certain point, money is pretty pointless and certainly not worth devoting your life to,’ he added.”
“This basically means giving the CEO the option of buying his or her company’s shares at the current price, but on a predetermined date in the future.”