Table of Contents
Key Points
- Strive Masiyiwa regains $100 million, raising his net worth to $1.3 billion after a $600 million drop earlier this year.
- Econet Wireless Zimbabwe and TN CyberTech stakes recover as investor confidence returns following Zimbabwe’s currency shift to the gold-backed ZiG.
- Masiyiwa’s AI factory, in partnership with NVIDIA, delivers 3,000 GPUs to South Africa, expanding computing capacity across Africa.
After a $600 million drop earlier this year that brought his net worth down to $1.2 billion, Zimbabwe’s richest man, Strive Masiyiwa, has regained $100 million in August. This increase comes as he pushes forward with several ambitious ventures, including the rollout of high-performance graphics processing units (GPUs) from his artificial intelligence factory.
Masiyiwa, who founded Econet in 1998 and grew it into one of Africa’s largest telecom groups operating in more than 20 countries, has long been a leading figure in Africa’s telecom sector. His net worth, now back at $1.3 billion according to Forbes, reflects renewed investor confidence and the gradual recovery of some of his key holdings.
Econet, TN CyberTech recover
The $100 million increase follows a $600 million decline earlier this year, when Masiyiwa’s net worth fell from $1.8 billion to $1.2 billion. The drop was linked to economic shifts in Zimbabwe after the government replaced the local currency with a new gold-backed unit, the ZiG, in an effort to curb hyperinflation. The move, introduced in May, disrupted markets and created challenges for local businesses.
Some of Masiyiwa’s most significant stakes, including his 38 percent share in Econet Wireless Zimbabwe and 33 percent in TN CyberTech Investments Holdings Limited (formerly EcoCash Holdings Zimbabwe), are now showing signs of recovery as investor interest returns. Beyond Zimbabwe, his holdings in Liquid Intelligent Technologies, a company providing cloud and fiber services across Africa, continue to strengthen his pan-African influence.
Masiyiwa drives Africa’s AI expansion
In recent years, Masiyiwa has expanded beyond telecoms into fintech, energy, satellite technology, and artificial intelligence. His firm, Cassava Technologies, is now spearheading Africa’s first AI factory in partnership with global chipmaker NVIDIA. The facility is designed to provide governments, businesses, and researchers with advanced computing power while keeping data securely on the continent.
The rollout is already underway. South Africa became the first country to receive high-performance GPUs from the factory, with around 3,000 units installed in June. Over the coming years, another 9,000 GPUs are expected to reach Kenya, Nigeria, Morocco, and Egypt. The project also integrates NVIDIA’s AI software through its cloud architecture, expanding Africa’s capacity to develop homegrown solutions in health, education, infrastructure, and more.
