Jeanette Christina Marais-Cilliers is a South African business leader and the Chief Executive Officer of the Momentum Group, a position she has held since August 2023. She is the first woman to lead the company, following a distinguished career spanning more than three decades in the financial services industry, with executive roles at Stanlib, Old Mutual, and Allan Gray.
Born and raised on her family’s farm near Reddersburg in the southern Free State, Marais is the eldest of five siblings. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics and Statistics from the University of the Free State and later completed a Master of Business Administration at the International Institute for Management Development in Lausanne, Switzerland.
Marais began her career in March 1990 at Momentum, where she initially worked in actuarial product development before moving into client management, sales, and marketing. She was part of the team that launched Momentum Administration Services and went on to help establish PSG’s unit trust business in 1999. Over the following years, she held senior leadership roles at Stanlib and Old Mutual, and from 2009 to 2018, she served at investment firm Allan Gray, first as Co-Head of Retail and later as Executive Director for Distribution and Client Services.
In 2018, Marais returned to Momentum Metropolitan Group as Deputy Chief Executive Officer, working alongside Mary Vilakazi. She was responsible for Momentum Investments, Momentum Distribution Services, Consult by Momentum, and Momentum Money. Five years later, in August 2023, she succeeded Hillie Meyer as Group CEO, marking a significant milestone in the company’s leadership journey.
Outside of her professional life, Marais lives in Hout Bay, Cape Town, with her husband, Johann Cilliers. The couple also own a farm in Paternoster. An avid athlete, she has completed several ultramarathons and continues to embody the discipline and endurance that have defined her leadership career.