The surname Bhungane is associated with the royal Bhungane II kaNtsele, Bhungan’omakhulukhulu (birth name Mlotsha), the king of the AmaHlubi tribe from 1760 to 1800.
Historical accounts show that Bhungane II was a gifted herbalist and rainmaker. Legend has it that the AmaHlubi believed no-one was equal to Bhungane who, in turn, was said to put his people first in everything he did.
In his article “Traditions and history of the amaHlubi tribe” in the Native Teachers’ Journal, published in 1932, historian W von Fintel wrote that on a certain day a wanderer, a young man, came to King Bhungane and said, “Father, give me umuthi wobukhosi — medicine of chiefship.”
King Bhungane replied, “My child, climb up yonder mountains. There you will find a cow, milk her.” The youth ascended the mountain, but returned breathless, and called out: “King, there is no cow, but a lioness.” The king looked seriously at the young man and instructed him again to climb the mountain to milk the cow, which he did, and returned with the lioness’s milk.
Bhungane commanded him to drink it, and he did so. “Now my child,” the king said, “go home, as you are now in possession of the umuthi wobukhosi.” The young man later became a great hero and the creator of the Zulu nation. His name was Shaka.
This account of Bhungane of the AmaHlubi tribe prompts comparisons with today’s leading light, Kennedy Bungane — the CEO of African Bank.
Given his name and obvious success at African Bank, one might wonder if this modern-day “corporate warrior” imbibed the mystical umuthi wobukhosi.
Bungane is turning around the African Bank, which was nearly written out of history, into a formidable institution. Under Bungane’s watch, African Bank’s resurgence mirrors the legendary umuthi wobukhosi, a transformation that is not only visible but enduring, paving the way for a legacy of strength and sustainability.
African Bank was rescued from collapse in 2014 after the South African Reserve Bank took a 50% stake in the bank. At the time, it was buckling under the weight of bad debt and struggling to raise new funding.
The bank’s much-publicised liquidity problems were related to unsecured lending. To remedy the situation, the Bank devised a R10bn bailout package and split the struggling entity into two — a “good bank” and a “bad bank”. The good bank housed the viable loans, while the bad debts remained in the old African Bank, which now operates as Residual Debt Services.
Under Bungane, the African Bank reported a turnaround in its financial results for 2024.
The key focus of building a fully fledged bank with diversified businesses has realised a strong balance sheet consisting of a net advances book of R34.4bn, a diversified funding base totalling R35.5bn and robust liquidity, cash reserves totalling R7.1bn and a net profit of R523m.
As part of its Excelerate25 strategy, African Bank was originally planning to list on the JSE in 2025 but has delayed the listing to 2027 or beyond. The delay is to allow current shareholders to exit and to ensure a successful listing.
Reviving the near-comatose African Bank was a huge mountain to climb. Like the legend of his name, Bungane, the CEO of African Bank, has climbed to the top of the mountain and found the umuthi wobukhosi.
He was appointed CEO on April 14 2021 and since then has been on an acquisition spree to bolster the bank’s critical mass.
Last week, however, he and his team announced that African Bank has taken a significant step toward expanding its footprint in the secured lending market by entering a binding offer to acquire Eskom’s staff home loan book. African Bank is finalising sale and purchase agreements for the acquisition, estimated to be worth R5.7bn.
In October 2023, African Bank announced that it had entered into a binding agreement with Sasfin Bank and Sasfin Private Equity Investment Holdings, subsidiaries of the listed entity Sasfin, to acquire its Capital Equipment Finance and its Commercial Property Finance businesses as going concerns in one indivisible transaction.
The value of the transaction was about R3.2bn.
In May 2022, Bungane made his acquisitive drive known to the market by buying Grindrod Bank. African Bank bought Grindrod Bank for R1.5bn in May 2022, accelerating its entry into the South African business banking sector.
Through these acquisitions, Bungane is laying the foundation for African Bank to emerge as a formidable financial institution.
• Lourie is founder and editor of TechFinancials.
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