The Remgro board yesterday paid tribute to their CEO Thys Visser, who died in a car accident last week.

“In his 32 years with the group he left an indelible mark on the company, its investments, the employees of the group and the South African business landscape at large,” the board said.

Visser, 58, died in a three-car collision on the N1 in Rawsonville, in the Western Cape, on Thursday.

The Remgro board said Visser was “instrumental in building Remgro into a multibillion-rand investment company with an array of diverse investments, creating enormous value for shareholders.”

The board expressed its heartfelt sympathy and condolences to his wife Amanda and children, Matthys and Riette.

Johann Rupert, chairperson of Remgro, said: “We have lost an irreplaceable colleague. Thys was a wise man with impeccable judgment but, most of all, a man of deep integrity.

“He was a friend to every one of us, a family man, father and husband.

“His death is a great tragedy.”

Visser served as chairperson of Rainbow Chicken, as a non-executive director of RMB Holdings and FirstRand, and as a director on the boards of numerous listed companies, including Mediclinic International and Distell Group.

An announcement about his successor will be made in due course. – Sapa