Thorsten Neumann

Mr. Thorsten Neumann is a member of our Board of Directors. Mr. Neumann has 22 years of technology and innovation experience in serial entrepreneurial roles in fintech and senior management of listed companies. He has a credible background in technology, operations, and business strategy in Europe, South East Asia, and Africa. Mr. Neumann founded an SME focused Internet Service Provider, Intdev Internet Technologies (Private) Ltd in 1998, and assumed the role of Chief Executive Officer from November 2008 to November 2010. He scaled and successfully exited the business, today a subsidiary of JSE-listed Alviva. Mr Neumann was an early joiner in the role of Project Developer at Global Trader from January 2004 through June 2008, where he led engineering and project delivery of the international expansion of the Equities Swaps (CFD) business. The company was successfully acquired by JSE-listed Purple Capital in 2007 for $47 million. Mr. Neumann was recruited by Banro Corporation to lead the Canadian TSX-listed gold miner’s technology strategy and group-wide ICT program. He held the role of Group Technology Manager from December 2010 until August 2013, and roll out enterprise information and communication systems in commissioning two industrial-scale greenfield gold mines. Mr. Neumann co-founded Singapore-based fintech Transaction Technologies Pte Ltd (SmartPesa) and served as Director and Chief Technology Officer from November 2013 until June 2019, where he secured VC funding to roll out the payments platform to thirteen markets. In July 2019, Mr Neumann took on the Managing Director role and Chief Technology Officer at SC Ventures, the innovation arm of Standard Chartered Bank to deliver tangible value creation – in sponsoring entrepreneurs, technology due diligences for the $100 million investment fund, and creation of new disruptive business models. He is a mentor with the German Accelerator, an active angel investor, and an advocate for open-source software.