Former Mxit CEO Alan Knott-Craig Jnr will not make any decisions around his future endeavours for the next six months.
Last Thursday, Mxit unexpectedly announced that Knott-Craig had stepped down, and he left with immediate effect. The news came just as the group secured R100 million in funding from shareholders and was "set for massive growth", according to a statement released at the time.
Knott-Craig tells ITWeb that the move was "unexpected" and he has "absolutely no idea what next". He says he will not make any decisions for the next six months.
In the official statement, Knott-Craig said he was leaving because of differences between him and the shareholders as to how to execute Mxit's growth plan.
"While the shareholders and I share the same vision, we differ on how to get there. Therefore, I agreed to go my own way. I wish them all the best for the future. Mxit is Africa's biggest tech success story, and can be a global success story."
Magic bus
Knott-Craig's e-mail to staff last Friday says Mxit is "the best bus in the world. There is no denying the magic inherent in this group of coders, parents, baristas, musicians, artists, accountants and addicts. The bad news is I've decided to get off the bus."
In the mail, Knott-Craig explains that the company's shareholders and he "believe in the same vision... we just couldn't reach agreement on how to get there".
Knott-Craig says he cannot be more specific on the details, but adds there are no hard feelings. He says it was simply a case of him being unable to persuade his partners that his way is the path to success, and that he needs to either change his way or improve his powers of persuasion.
World of Avatar, which Knott-Craig founded in 2010, bought a 90% stake in Mxit last year, while 10% remained in a staff trust set up by Mxit founder Herman Heunis. World of Avatar's co-shareholders include the family trusts of two FirstRand founders: Paul Harris and GT Ferreira.
Knott-Craig has also relinquished his stake in World of Avatar, as well as his position as director. While he did not wish to disclose his stake in World of Avatar due to its complicated structure, he says he did not control it.
According to the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission database, Knott-Craig is a director in several other companies, including Basic Business Investments, iFind and a non-profit entity - Nurturing Orphans of Aids for Humanity.
Francois Swart, current CFO of both Mxit and World of Avatar, will act as the interim CEO, and Mxit will recruit a new CEO and other new executives to drive its expansion.
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