The Please Call Me Millions: Who Paid? | ITWeb Tech Headlines 21 – 26 September 2026
These are the stories making headlines on ITWeb this week. An ITWeb investigation into the Please Call Me saga asks who paid for inventor Nkosana Makate's decade-long legal battle, with advocates potentially costing up to R145 000 a day, as Black Rock Mining's Errol Elsdon claims 40% of Makate's settlement with Vodacom.
Jorge Mendes buys R20.8 million worth of shares, deepening his direct stake as the operator pursues its turnaround.
The company targets revenue growth in the upper-single-digit range in its 2027 financial year, after growing wholesale revenue by 20% and cutting net debt by 64%.
The majority shareholder in SA’s fourth-biggest mobile operator aims to reduce its stake to between 20% and 30% in the telco, which recently listed on the JSE.
The mobile operator’s maiden results show solid execution, with data-driven growth and prepaid subscriber gains.
The company sees the next wave of growth in broadband for operators in underserved areas.
Cell C is determined it will not make the same mistakes as Virgin Mobile and Red Bull Mobile did, says CEO Jorge Mendes.
The CEOs of MTN, Vodacom, Telkom and Blu Label Unlimited earned a combined R224.9 million in the most recent fiscal year.
A total of 4 000 Cell C shares changed hands at R27 each just minutes after the mobile operator’s shares debuted on the JSE.
The mobile operator’s market cap could be as high as R12.1 billion if it issues shares at the top end of the range.
Concurrently with its listing, Cell C will put aside R2.4 billion for a broad-based black economic empowerment company.
The mobile operator says the proposed JSE listing will help it get out of its multibillion-rand debt and increase its profile and credibility.
The firm starts making plans to exit Cell C through a separate JSE listing, in a complex restructuring that could result in both companies being debt-free.