Since his name appeared on the global Top 50 Crypto Rich list, Xolane Ndhlovu, billionaire investor and chairman of DafriBank LTD, has become a subject of interest across Africa as many of his followers on social media and in the corporate world seek to know more about the 36-year-old who is South Africa’s new black billionaire.
The interest, however, is focused on the little known aspects of his history. For instance, it comes as a surprise to many to discover for the first time that Xolane Ndhlovu, 36, founded the South African Entrepreneurship Centre For Ex-Offenders, SAECEO, the first private entrepreneurial rehabilitation centre for former prisoners. The first-of-its-kind enterprise that provides customised entrepreneurship, technology, and business training to former inmates.
Another interesting point in his story is the little-known fact that the DafriBank LTD chairman once served a jail term and was the Mzansi prisoner who donated R500, 000 to the Solidarity Fund set up for the Covid-19 emergency by South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa. More dramatic, however, is the fact that it was during his incarceration that he earned his first million dollars when he invested in cryptocurrencies by buying Binance (BNB). He proved to be a shrewd investor by putting his money in tech-focused startups which became valuable blue-chip companies a few years later.
The most inspiring part of his biography, however, is how he outgrew his poor background to become a billionaire. His life as a young person was without the silver spoon element. Growing up on the dusty streets of Burgersfort town in Mpumalanga province of South Africa, Xolane Ndhlovu was raised by a poor mother and the boy grew up poor, surrounded by the trappings of poverty, including broken education and gang activities. A brief spell of success as a radio DJ came to an abrupt end when he was convicted for gang-related violence.
Nonetheless, he went on to become a topnotch entrepreneur, by first, founding the UMEH Group, and then later, DafriGroup PLC, a public company that is a corporate juggernaut with a presence in four African countries and the United Kingdom.
