The news:
- Katlego Maphai has stepped down as Yoco’s CEO after leading the company for a decade
- Co-founders Bradley Wattrus and Lungisa Matshoba will serve as co-CEOs, while Carl Wazen will continue to lead go-to-market efforts
- The leadership restructure is aimed at aligning the company with its next phase of growth
Katlego Maphai, CEO and co-founder of South African fintech Yoco, has stepped down from his role after ten years of leading the company. This marks a major leadership shift at one of Africa’s most recognisable digital payments firms.
Founded in 2013 by Maphai, Carl Wazen, Bradley Wattrus, and Lungisa Matshoba, Yoco has grown into a prominent player in South Africa’s SME ecosystem, providing card machines, online payment tools, and financial software for small businesses.
In a letter published on Yoco’s website, Maphai will stay involved in a long-term strategic role, supporting the team “where most useful,” according to his statement.
Under his leadership, Yoco has scaled significantly: it now serves hundreds of thousands of merchants in South Africa, raised large funding rounds, and has a valuation estimated at around US$700 million (R12.5 billion).
Rather than appointing a single replacement, the company will now be led by co-founders Matshoba and Wattrus, who will serve as co-CEOs. Matshoba will focus on product, technology, and customer experience, while Wattrus will handle operations, governance, and financial management.
Carl Wazen, another co-founder and former Chief Business Officer, will continue overseeing commercial operations and partnerships, including go-to-market execution. This leadership reshuffle signals a broader strategic shift as Yoco prepares for the next phase of its expansion.
The company has raised over $170 million in funding to date, including an $83 million Series C round in 2021 led by Dragoneer Investment Group, with participation from Breyer Capital, Partech, and Tencent. Yoco has used that capital to build infrastructure, launch new software products, and invest in hardware that makes digital transactions easier for underserved businesses.
A change in the CEO role often accompanies a transition in how a company operates, with emphasis on systems, governance, operational discipline, and risk management.
With co‑CEOs or distributed leadership responsibilities, there will be demands for clarity in roles, coordination, and decision‑making.
