South African entrepreneurs Eldrid Jordaan and Goitse Konopi have successfully listed their new technology venture, Suppple, on the Luxembourg Stock Exchange.
The company has a market capitalisation of £200 million (about R4.6 billion) and its shares are priced at £2 each.
This strategic move aims to bolster Suppple’s financial stability and enhance its attractiveness to investors, which is expected to support the company’s plans for expansion into new markets and sectors.
The founders, Prof. Eldrid Jordaan and Goitse Konopi, coupled with their visionary leadership in GovChat laid the groundwork for Suppple.
Under their stewardship, GovChat launched as South Africa’s official platform for citizen-government engagement, GovChat was crucial during the COVID-19 pandemic.
It facilitated real-time communication and service delivery, supporting over 10 million users with access to critical health updates, social relief applications, and government services.
Its innovative use of WhatsApp chatbots for public engagement significantly enhanced governmental transparency and efficiency.
The provisional listing enhances Suppple’s capital availability and investment attractiveness, and facilitating its growth prospects and fuels its expansion into new markets and sectors.
Suppple has long thrived on the strength of its public-private partnerships, collaborating with governments, private institutions, academic institutions and commercial entities to innovate, develop and own software solutions that address both market demands and societal needs.
The provisional listing on the LuxSE underscores Suppple’s commitment to fostering further collaboration and innovation, leveraging on partnerships to maintain its innovative edge and bolster market position.
Strategic Partnerships and Market Impact by Sector
1) Retail and Supply Chain Management:
CGCSA (Consumer Goods Council of South Africa) and GS1 South Africa: Suppple’s technology plays a pivotal role in the verification and tracking of products, significantly enhancing supply chain transparency and combating illicit trade. This partnership supports the scanning and verification of over 500 billion products globally, with 10 billion products scanned daily across 115 countries. This robust system aids in addressing illegal trade activities valued between ZAR 100 billion and ZAR 1 trillion. The extensive use of GS1 barcodes across various products and markets allows for seamless international operations, making this technology essential for global trade and regulatory compliance in the consumer goods sector.
2) Business Process Outsourcing (BPO):
Resolv Global: Suppple enhances BPO services in South Africa, Kenya, and Columbia with customised call center solutions. By integrating chatbots and AI technology, Suppple improves customer and employee experiences, optimising operational efficiency and service quality.
3) Civic Engagement and Public Administration:
Local Governments: Initiatives in cities like Dakar and Nairobi utilise Suppple’s software for managing public services including social welfare, public health, and urban planning. The technology’s adaptability enhances civic operations. In partnership with the Senegalese government, Suppple has co-created platforms for citizen-government engagement and the digitization of social welfare services, driving transparency and accessibility. In Kenya, Suppple’s technology enables disaster reporting and management, fostering responsive governance.
4) Digital Health:
African Union Member States: Utilising our AI chatbot technology to provide accessible digital healthcare services across 54 member states, Suppple is instrumental in transforming primary healthcare delivery and management.
5) Digital Education:
United Nations Partnership: Collaborating with the UN, Suppple is developing digital education components that enhance learning opportunities and accessibility, leveraging technology to empower educators and students globally.
Suppple’s received institutional capital from MSM Property Fund (Pty) Ltd (‘MSM”), a boutique listed equities investment house that is both an asset management and private equity manager. Musi Skosana, Fund Manager and CEO of MSM remarked; “Suppple is transformational in nature because the company is changing and digitising the interactions of African citizens with their respective governments. The IPO cements the relationship, by involving the private sector thereby being a perfect example of a public, private, partnership. We’ve seen that the companies, which have the PPP’s model at the centre of their evolution are more sustainable and have a broader impact on society thereby remaining relevant for consumers.”
Jordaan, Co-CEO of Suppple remarked;” Our propensity to use technology for the greater good underscores our commitment to sustainable growth and societal impact, further enhancing our public private partnership model.”
As Suppple embarks on this new chapter with its provisional listing on the LuxSE, it will continue its growth strategy to scale operations across global cloud marketplaces. This listing represents a testament to Suppple’s dedication to driving innovation, fostering collaboration, and making a positive impact on society.
