South African billionaire Ivan Saltzman's family loses $50 million as Dis-Chem shares crash
The Saltzman family's stake in Dis-Chem, the pharmacy chain Ivan and Lynette Saltzman founded, lost $50 million as shares had their worst day since 2018.
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The Saltzman family's stake in Dis-Chem, the pharmacy chain Ivan and Lynette Saltzman founded, lost $50 million as shares had their worst day since 2018.
Dis-Chem, the South African pharmacy chain founded by billionaire Ivan Saltzman, gained market share with its loyalty programme, but half-year earnings fell 13%.
Dis-Chem has lost about $432 million (R7 billion) in market value in three months as the billionaire Saltzman family relinquished control following weak annual results.
Ivan Saltzman resigned from the Dis-Chem board with immediate effect, barely three weeks after taking the non-executive seat he retired into.
Saul Saltzman, son of Dis-Chem's billionaire founder Ivan Saltzman, has resigned from the board, loosening the founding family's grip on the retailer.
The Saltzman family has been ranked by the Bloomberg Billionaires Index for the first time with a $1.3 billion fortune built from a single Johannesburg pharmacy.
Ivan Saltzman built Dis-Chem from a single Johannesburg pharmacy in 1978 into a $1.7 billion healthcare chain and now faces his hardest task: handing it over.
Dis-Chem CEO Rui Morais is spending hundreds of millions on internal disruption to transform South Africa's second-largest pharmacy chain into an integrated healthcare provider.
South Africa's Human Rights Commission opened a hate speech investigation into Dis-Chem shareholder Mark Saltzman over posts on X containing the k-word and other racially inflammatory language.
Mark and Dan Saltzman have sold R642 million ($37.9 million) in Dis-Chem shares months after inheriting a R6.8 billion stake from their parents.
South African multimillionaire Saltzman family has gained $20 million as their Dis-Chem stake climbs to $588 million.
The Saltzman family’s Dis-Chem stake tops $630 million after steady JSE gains, signaling cautious investor confidence in pharmacy retail.
Dis-Chem founder Ivan Saltzman will step back again in 2026, ending an executive era as the family reshapes its shareholding.
Dis-Chem Pharmacies, backed by South Africa’s billionaire Saltzman family, posted $1.2 billion revenue in H1 2025, driven by retail and wholesale growth.
Dis-Chem, backed by South Africa’s Saltzman family, has opened its 300th store in Mbombela, expanding access to affordable primary healthcare.
The Saltzman family’s stake in Dis-Chem has rebounded to nearly $500 million as shares rally on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE).