South African executive Raisibe Morathi, chief financial officer of Vodacom Group, received total pre-tax remuneration of R68.86 million ($4.25 million) for the financial year ended March 31, 2026, more than doubling from a year earlier after the vesting of long-term incentive awards lifted her overall compensation.

According to Vodacom’s annual remuneration report, Morathi’s total single-figure remuneration increased 112.1 percent from R32.47 million ($2 million) in FY2025 to R68.86 million ($4.25 million) in FY2026. Based on an indicative tax rate of 45 percent, her estimated post-tax remuneration rose to R37.87 million ($2.3 million), up from R17.86 million ($1.1 million) in the previous financial year.

Morathi’s long-term incentives lift total annual pay

The increase was largely driven by long-term incentive (LTI) awards that vested in June 2026. The vested awards were valued at R41.37 million ($2.55 million), compared with R9.41 million ($582,000) a year earlier. The package included R31.26 million ($1.93 million) from the Conditional Share Plan (CSP), R9.45 million ($580,000) in Vodafone share awards and R659,638 ($41,000) from vested Siyanda units.

Morathi also received a higher short-term incentive tied to Vodacom’s financial performance during the year. Her annual bonus increased 39.4 percent to R12.43 million ($770,000), from R8.91 million ($552,000) in FY2025. Her guaranteed salary rose 5.2 percent to R11.93 million ($740,000), while other benefits, including executive security arrangements and a cellphone allowance, declined 18.1 percent to R855,963 ($55,000).

Vodacom said the vested long-term incentive awards were valued using a Vodacom share price of R152.23 ($9.42) and a Vodafone share price of £1.11, based on an exchange rate of R21.82 per pound as of May 31, 2026, the closest practicable valuation date. The company added that Morathi continues to exceed its executive shareholding requirement, holding shares worth more than 150 percent of her guaranteed salary.

Three decades championing corporate women leaders

Morathi, a chartered accountant, was appointed Vodacom’s chief financial officer and executive director on Nov. 1, 2020, after more than a decade as group chief financial officer at Nedbank Group. She also serves on the board of Safaricom. She holds an Advanced Management Programme qualification from INSEAD in France, a Higher Diploma in Taxation from the University of the Witwatersrand and a Master of Philosophy in Corporate Strategy from the Gordon Institute of Business Science at the University of Pretoria.

With more than 30 years of experience across South Africa’s financial services and telecommunications sectors, Morathi has held senior leadership roles at Nedbank Group, Sanlam Group and the Industrial Development Corporation. She also serves on several Vodacom boards, brings extensive audit committee experience and sponsors the company’s Women’s Network Forum, which supports the advancement of women and young professionals.

The increase in Morathi’s remuneration came as Vodacom delivered stronger financial results for the year ended March 31, 2026, with growth across its operations supporting higher earnings and executive incentive payouts. Group revenue rose 10.1 percent to R167.7 billion ($10.4 billion), driven by strong performances in Egypt, Tanzania, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Lesotho, alongside resilient results in South Africa and Mozambique.

Vodacom beats guidance on strong earnings

Group EBITDA rose 12.8 percent to R62.6 billion ($3.9 billion), while normalized EBITDA increased 14.2 percent. The EBITDA margin improved to 37.4 percent, reflecting stronger profitability in Egypt and the group’s international operations. Headline earnings per share climbed 22.9 percent to R10.53 ($0.65), supported by steady earnings in South Africa and stronger contributions from Egypt, the international business and associates.

Vodacom also expanded its customer base at a faster pace than planned. During the financial year, the group added 26 million customers, more than double its annual Vision 2030 target of 10 million, bringing its total customer base to 237.3 million across eight African markets. The stronger customer growth prompted Vodacom to raise its Vision 2030 target to 275 million customers, reflecting management’s confidence in continued demand for mobile connectivity and digital financial services across its markets.

The company’s stronger operating performance was also reflected in its balance sheet. Total assets increased from R249.98 billion ($15.46 billion) to R276.43 billion ($17.1 billion), while total equity rose to R107.2 billion ($6.63 billion). Retained earnings climbed to R60.64 billion ($3.75 billion), enabling the board to declare a final dividend of R4.05 ($0.25) per share, in line with its policy of distributing at least 75 percent of headline earnings.