There were no theatrics, no corporate platitudes. When Strive Masiyiwa logged on to speak virtually from his USA base after shareholders voted to delist Econet Wireless Zimbabwe from the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange, his voice carried the weight of 26 years.
“The shareholders have spoken, the minority shareholders have spoken,” Masiyiwa said, emphasising that he and his related interests had voluntarily abstained from voting. “There was nothing in this resolution that would have prevented us from voting. We chose not to.”
For Zimbabwe’s biggest telecoms operator, with more than 15 million subscribers, the vote marked the end of a 26-year run on the ZSE. But for Masiyiwa, it reopened old wounds.
He pointed to what he called a broken valuation model. When the board announced it was considering delisting, shares traded at just US$0.08, implying a market capitalisation of about US$239 million, despite revenues that once topped US$900 million.
“And you say we shouldn’t intervene?” he asked incredulously.
Revenue fell from US$819 million in 2019 to US$217 million in 2020 amid monetary turmoil that decimated many Zimbabwean industries. Econet foreign investors, once 30% of the register, now account for less than 2%.
Although revenue has since recovered to US$779 million in 2025, Masiyiwa argued that the market no longer reflects intrinsic value. “We must have a right to leave,” he said.
The most emotional moment came when he invoked the memory of the late Mrs Gatsi, who out of sheer trust, took a gamble on the company when it formed. On listing day, she sold her car and invested US$16,000.
“I want to come back to one important shareholder: Mrs. Gatsi, the late wife of Pastor Langton Gatsi. She said, ‘It’s for my children.’ What do I do with the family of Mrs Gatsi?” he asked, his voice breaking. Instead of buying out minorities at depressed prices, Econet guaranteed US$0.50 per share.
The Econet founder traced the company’s painful origins to 1993, when the State-owned PTC (The Posts and Telecommunications Corporation) refused him a licence, sparking a bruising five-year legal battle that ultimately reshaped Zimbabwe’s telecoms sector.
“We fought to list. We even went to court to secure it. But we must also have the right to leave,” he said.
Now freed from public market constraints, Econet is pivoting toward a US$3 billion AI, data centre and infrastructure vision, including 5G upgrades and a technology city project near Harare’s airport.
“I can’t say I’m the happiest person because I delisted. But sometimes leadership means making painful decisions,” stated Masiyiwa.
For Econet, the delisting closes one chapter. For Masiyiwa, it is the beginning of another, one he says will be defined by artificial intelligence, resilience and unfinished promises.
Share