The South African who went from trainee to founding an insurance giant in two years

Marnus van Heerden went from starting his accounting articles at KPMG South Africa in July 2016 to launching the insurance start-up Pineapple in July 2018. He currently serves as the company’s CEO.

Pineapple has since grown to become one of South Africa’s biggest insurance tech companies.

It says its technology enables it to serve customers at 20% of the cost of traditional insurance, a saving it says it passes on to customers.

Pineapple attracted R400 million in funding in a series B round in November 2023.

Investors Futuregrowth Asset Management, Talent10, and Mineworkers Investment Company (MIC) led the funding round. At the same time, Pineapple received additional support from existing investors Old Mutual ESD, Lireas Holdings, Asissa ESD Fund, and E4E Africa.

Van Heerden wasn’t alone in founding Pineapple. He co-founded the insuretech company with Matthew Smith, Ndabenhle Ngulube, and Sizwe Ndlovu.

However, he has led the company as CEO since its inception.

Van Heerden grew up in Johannesburg, and he says his parents played a significant role in his early development.

“I grew up in a very loving household. My dad was a very driven and structured individual who I learned a lot from, and my mom was very compassionate, loving, and caring,” he said in an interview with Dr Nik Eberl.

“I also have two amazing brothers, which meant the competitive spirit in the family kept on challenging me to do more and achieve more.”

He felt this gave him a perfect balance.

Speaking about his dream career, Van Heerden said he never had a specific career path in mind, but instead dreamed of making South Africa a better place.

After school, he attended Stellenbosch University and completed a BAccLLB from 2009 to 2014.

The BAccLLB course is an undergraduate degree that allows students to obtain both the BAcc (accounting) and LLB (law) degrees within five years. It is considered a rare qualification.

He then completed his Honours in Accounting at Stellenbosch University.

Van Heerden stood out during his time at Stellenbosch University. He was primarius and head mentor at Eendrag residence in Stellenbosch.

While primarius, Eendrag won MAD2 (RAG), an initiative where students get involved with community development.

The residence also won the sports trophy and received an A+ for its welcoming programme.

Van Heerden helped drive a culture of critical thinking and engagement at Stellenbosch University by bringing several renowned guest speakers to the campus.

A major turning point

After completing his studies at Stellenbosch University, Van Heerden completed his accounting articles at KPMG South Africa from January 2015 to December 2017.

According to his LinkedIn page, he started working on Pineapple while still completing his articles in July 2016.

Around this time, he reached a turning point in his career path.

“One of the big turning points was meeting my three co-founders. Matthew, Sizwe, and Nda. I didn’t know them at a personal or career level before Pineapple,” said Van Heerden.

“The four of us met quite serendipitously, with myself, Matthew, and Nda meeting through an innovation competition, and then meeting Sizwe on the Gautrain.”

He added that he learnt a lot from his co-founders and said meeting them was his career’s most profound turning point.

Aligning with his goal of bettering South Africa, he is passionate about helping young people find their purpose through taking on responsibility.

Van Heerden helped create a bursary and prize fund for previously disadvantaged, high-performing students, amounting to R1.5 million over three years.

He also helped establish a community project contributing over R100,000 yearly in Stellenbosch.

Van Heerden has since gained almost 10 years of experience in the insurance space. He is passionate about solving the world’s short-term insurance challenges.

His success in the space hasn’t gone unnoticed. Global Brands named him Top Entrepreneur in Johannesburg, and he is part of the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA) top 35 under 35.

In his free time, he enjoys time with friends and family, playing golf, and spending time in the bush.