About DNI
DNI is a market-leading investment company.
DNI was founded in 2006 and began as a procurement business offering cost reduction and supply chain optimisation solutions to large corporations.
DNI has built/scaled new businesses and acquired new brands to create a more holistic ecosystem servicing our key clients and the broader market with a range of solutions in the distribution and technology space.
Today, DNI has evolved into a diversified investment company operating primarily in distribution and technology related services from a B2B perspective.
DNI has a blue-chip shareholder base and operates in 32 countries globally.
DNI has four main operating segments, with a primary focus on the telecommunications and retail sector.
Mobile product distribution (sim cards, airtime, electricity)
Hardware
distribution (mostly handsets)
Technology
solutions
Value-added services (insurance, field services,
mobile Wi-Fi)
The Group employs over 1,100 people
The DNI Group’s vision is to provide affordable connectivity and financial inclusion to the emerging market, enhanced by meaningful content and digital services that improve quality of life.
The fundamental principles that underscore how the DNI Group is managed can be summarised as follows:
- High client satisfaction
- Supporting its community and ecosystem
- Sound, ethical business practices and policies
- Enhancing shareholder value
Meet our executive team
ANDREW DUNN
executive chairman
Andrew built Miltrans, a logistics and supply chain business, which was later sold to Super Group. Andrew was part of the team that managed the successful MBO of Premier Foods, which was sold to Brait. He invested into Manline Group, which was merged and sold into Barloworld Logistics.
He also has several other Private Equity interests spanning:
- Property (SA and UK)
- Aviation (National Airways Corporation)
- Dealership (Melrose Motor Investments)
- Industrial (SSG Holdings, Chemfin)
- Venture Capital (Platform Investment Partners, Universal Partners)
Andrew founded DNI in 2006 before introducing Richmark Group as shareholders, where he took over the collective CEO responsibilities (of both Richmark and DNI) from 2012 – 2018. He then stepped back into the role of CEO of DNI from 2018 to 2024, scaling the business from R1bn in revenue to R9bn+.
He has since moved into the role of Executive Chairman where he will focus on strategic growth initiatives including business development and sales, international expansion and product development.
Dr Ryan Noach
Chief Executive Officer
Dr Ryan Noach is a medical doctor, an entrepreneur and experienced business leader, with 25 years operational and leadership experience in the financial services and healthcare sectors.
Through a 16 year tenure at the JSE-listed Discovery Group, Ryan held various roles including Chief Executive Officer of Discovery Health, South Africa’s largest health insurer. Ryan led Discovery Health through the Covid-19 pandemic, during which time he played a central role in South Africa’s response to the global pandemic. Ryan was integrally involved in the launch of Discovery Bank, where he was the Deputy CEO during the design and build phase of the Bank. Earlier in his career, Ryan was the Group Chief Operating Officer and Executive Director of the Netcare Group, overseeing primary healthcare, hospital and emergency services operations. His exposure to leadership of both the funding and provider sides of private healthcare, as well as more broadly in Banking and payments, unlocks useful insights.
Ryan is an entrepreneur at heart, having founded various business in the emergency medical services, biotech and public transport sectors. He remains invested in some of these businesses and has successfully exited others.
Ryan qualified as a medical practitioner at Wits University in 1997 and pursued a post graduate career in emergency medicine and disaster management. He completed the Diploma in Primary Emergency Care and attended the Executive Development Program at GIBS Business School, University of Pretoria.
Ryan has a particular interest in technology that enhances peoples’ lives, in digitization of customer journeys and in disruptive technlologies.
Ryan has consistently been involved in multiple social causes throughout his life, notably having represented South Africa at various global disaster responses through which he co-founded Rescue South Africa. Ryan is a proud husband and father, is an exercise and healthy nutrition fanatic and a passionate helicopter pilot.
Ryan has assumed the role of Group CEO at the DNI Group of companies with effect from March 2024, concomitant with the move of the Founder, Andrew Dunn, from CEO to Executive Chairman of the Group.
DAVE SMALDON
Chief Operating Officer
With a Bachelor of Commerce Degree, Dave began his career at Super Group as an accountant. Climbing the ranks at Super Group and holding a variety of high-level positions, Dave left the Group as Divisional Commercial Manager of supply chain and joined Andrew at the DNI Group in 2007.
Since then Dave has held many C-suite positions within the Group, most notably that of Group CFO and COO for DNI Retail and ITC. DNI Retail is Cell C’s largest distributor of starter packs and has won Best Dealer of the year for 3 years in a row. Dave currently holds the position of COO of the DNI Group.
ZIYAAD MANIE Chief Strategy Officer
Ziyaad holds a BBusSci: Finance & Accounting from UCT and is a CFA charter holder.
Ziyaad spent 7 years working at Rand Merchant Bank (RMB), where he played a leading role in over 80 transactions, with expertise across advisory, debt financing and equity investing. He played a pivotal role in founding the Family Office Group Solutions team at the bank. DNI was one of Ziyaad’s clients at RMB before joining DNI in 2020 as an executive director.
At DNI, Ziyaad manages all mergers, acquisitions, disposals, asset allocation, funding, product and geographic expansion, Group collaboration, synergies and driving other strategic value creation opportunities. He sits on over 20 boards within DNI and privately. Ziyaad has helped the DNI Group source over R1.5bn in equity, raised over R3bn in debt funding and implemented approximately R2bn in acquisitions to date. This has significantly contributed to the diversification, growth and scale of DNI.
NIVEN SHAWChief Financial Officer
Niven finished his accounting articles with Deloitte in 2011 and was thereafter assigned to the Deloitte Tampa Bay (Florida) office in the USA. Upon return from the USA assignment, he was appointed as a Manager in the Accounting and Financial Advisory Division at Deloitte Johannesburg.
Achieving rapid success, he was promoted to a Senior Manager where he formed part of the leadership team of the division in January 2016 to June 2017. Niven has knowledge of a wide range of industries including financial services, construction, tourism, logistics, telecommunications and technology and media industries. Niven joined DNI in 2017 and now serves as the Group’s CFO.
LIAM HEINZELMANN Group Legal Counsel
Liam holds a Bachelors Degree in Commerce and a Bachelors Degree in Law from the University of Pretoria. Liam finished his articles of clerkship with Werksmans Attorneys Johannesburg in 2016 and was retained as an Associate in the corporate mergers & acquisitions department. After achieving rapid success, Liam was promoted to Senior Associate two years later.
At Werksmans, Liam advised on mergers & acquisitions, mining transactions, cross‑border transactions, listings on the JSE, black economic empowerment transactions, corporate restructurings and general commercial transactions. After having been exposed to a range of industries including telecommunications, technology, mining, construction and retail, Liam decided to leave practice and join DNI in 2020 where he currently serves as DNI’s Group Legal Counsel.
Ingrid HindleyGroup Human Resources
Ingrid Hindley has a B Soc Sc (Honours) majoring in Industrial Psychology. She is an experienced Human Capital professional with over 15 years’ experience operating at a senior level within various sectors inclusive of telecommunications, local government, NGO’s and consulting.
Ingrid joined the Group in 2021 and currently offers both strategic and operational capability in the full value chain of Human Capital, Leadership, Transformation, Wellness and Skills Development.
Stacey ManieGROUP HEAD OF COMPLIANCE
Stacey qualified from UCT with an LLB (Dean’s Merit List) and BA(Media), before joining the employment law team at ENS for 4+ years where she qualified as an attorney.
She was then head hunted to join Uber’s operation in South Africa as part of the legal team in 2017.
Thereafter, Stacey did her pupillage at the Johannesburg Society of Advocates and enjoyed 3.5 successful years as an advocate specialising in labour law.
In 2021, she relocated to Cape Town and joined DNI as the Group’s head of compliance. Stacey has been instrumental in implementing an enhanced policy, risk and compliance framework across DNI’s 20+ businesses.
Board of directors
Andrew Dunn
EXEC
Dr Ryan Noach
EXEC
David Smaldon
EXEC
ZIYAAD MANIE Exec
CHRISTOPHER SEABROOKE Non-Exec Chairman
NCHAUPE KHAOLE Non-Exec
MARY BOMELA Non-Exec
MIKE TEKE Non-Exec
Shareholders
Mineworkers Investment Company
The Mineworker’s Investment Company (MIC) is a 100% black owned broad-based investment holding company that was established by the Mineworkers Investment Trust (MIT) to provide ongoing funding for the Trust’s social and educational projects.
Sabvest Capital Limited
Sabvest Capital Limited is an investment group which was listed on the JSE on 13 May 2020 as part of a restructuring in which it acquired 100% of the ordinary and ‘N’ ordinary shares of Sabvest Limited, which had been listed on the JSE since 1988, in exchange for a single class of Sabcap ordinary shares. The Seabrooke Family Trust controls Sabcap through an unlisted ‘Z’ share.
RMB
RMB is a leading African Corporate and Investment Bank and part of one of the largest financial services groups (by market capitalisation) in Africa – FirstRand Limited.