At a Glance
- Namibia’s top business groups dominate finance, mining, energy, logistics and manufacturing sectors.
- First-generation entrepreneurs and state firms anchor exports, employment and long-term capital formation.
- Conglomerates blend private ownership and public assets in Namibia’s hybrid economic model.
Namibia’s economy is shaped by a small but powerful circle of business groups whose reach spans finance, mining, energy, logistics, manufacturing, and telecommunications.
These groups anchor capital formation, employment, exports, and infrastructure development in a country balancing resource wealth with long-term diversification.
From banking giants such as Capricorn Group and FNB Namibia Holdings to industrial pillars like Ohlthaver & List and Namibia Breweries, these conglomerates have built scale by straddling core domestic needs and regional opportunities.
Others, including De Beers Namibia, Swakop Uranium, and NamPower, sit at the heart of the country’s extractive and energy backbone, underpinning exports and fiscal stability.
Many of these empires were built by first-generation entrepreneurs, figures like Frans Indongo, Sven Thieme, Koos Brandt, and Quinton van Rooyen, who turned modest beginnings into multi-sector platforms.
State-linked entities such as NamPort, Meatco, and NamPower continue to play an outsized role, reinforcing Namibia’s hybrid economic model where private capital and public assets coexist.
Together, these 15 groups profiled by Shore Africa reflect Namibia’s commercial reality: concentrated ownership, sectoral diversity, and a growing push toward regional relevance, resilience, and long-term value creation.
1. Capricorn Group
Year founded: 1982
Founded by Koos Brandt, Capricorn Group, with a market valuation of NAD13.33 billion ($827.32 million), operates as a holding company which engages in the provision of banking, insurance, asset management, and microfinance products and services. It dominates Namibia’s financial services sector through Bank Windhoek, with expanding operations across Botswana and Zambia.
2. Frans Indongo Group
Year founded: 1964
Built by retail magnate Frans Indongo, the group spans property, retail, hospitality, and agriculture, making it one of Namibia’s most diversified private empires. As a fully Namibian-owned entity, the Frans Indongo Group prides itself in a diversified portfolio of business investments across Namibia.
3. Ohlthaver & List (O&L) Group
Year founded: 1919
Led by Sven Thieme, O&L is Namibia’s largest privately held group, with interests in beverages, fishing, retail, hospitality, and real estate.
4. Trustco Group
Year founded: 1992
Founded by Quinton van Rooyen, Trustco operates across insurance, education, banking, and property, with listings and assets extending beyond Namibia. With a commanding 69.8 percent majority stake, the founding Van Rooyen family’s majority control ensures stability and direction, enabling the company to seize new opportunities, championing adaptability, fostering innovation, and securing key investments to fortify its standing in Namibia’s corporate landscape.
5. Namibia Breweries Limited
Year founded: 1920
Producer of Windhoek Lager, NBL anchors Namibia’s manufacturing sector and is a major exporter within Southern Africa. Namibia Breweries is a Namibia-based beverage manufacturing company.
6. De Beers Group Namibia
A cornerstone of Namibia’s diamond industry, De Beers Namibia is critical to export earnings, employment, and government revenue.
7. Paratus Namibia Holdings
Year founded: 2017
Paratus has emerged as a key player in telecommunications, building digital infrastructure that supports businesses across Southern Africa.
8. NamPower
Year founded: 1964
The state-owned utility underpins Namibia’s energy supply and is increasingly focused on renewable and cross-border power projects.
9. Meatco
Year founded: 1986
Namibia’s largest meat processor, Meatco supports livestock farmers and exports beef to premium international markets.
10. NamPort
Year founded: 1994
Operator of Walvis Bay and Lüderitz ports, NamPort is central to Namibia’s logistics ambitions and regional trade corridors.
11. Pupkewitz Holdings
Year founded: 1925
Pupkewitz Holdings is a premier, Namibian-owned group of companies founded in 1925 with a rich history in trade, operating major divisions in building materials (Megabuild), motor retail (Motors), electrical supplies (Megatech), and agriculture. A long-established conglomerate active in motor retail, construction materials, equipment, and automotive distribution.
12. Kalahari Holdings / Paragon Namibia
Year founded: 1989
An influential investment holding structure with stakes across mining, energy, logistics, and financial services.
13. FNB Namibia Holdings
Year founded: 1907
One of the largest listed financial institutions on the NSX, serving retail, corporate, and investment clients nationwide.
14. Letshego Holdings Namibia
Year founded: 1997
A major microfinance and consumer lending platform, expanding access to credit for individuals and SMEs.
15. Swakop Uranium (Pty) Ltd
Year founded: 2006
Operator of the Husab Mine, Swakop Uranium is a major force in Namibia’s uranium mining and export economy.
