 | This article contains promotional content .(September 2025) |
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| Company type | Public |
|---|---|
| JSE: COH | |
| Industry | Education |
| Founded | 30 December 1998 |
| Founder | Dr Chris van der Merwe |
| Headquarters | Durbanville, Western Cape, South Africa |
Area served | South Africa |
Key people | |
| Services | Private schooling |
| Subsidiaries |
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| Website | www |
Curro Holdings Limited, often referred to simply as Curro, is a South African educational holding company. [1] The company owns private schools across all nine South African provinces. [2]
The first Curro School was incorporated as a public company on 30 December 1998 by Dr Chris van der Merwe, with the goal of making private education affordable. [3] [4] van der Merwe began teaching in a church vestry with 28 pupils, this was soon followed in 1999, with the construction of Curro Durbanville a privately owned campus in Durbanville. [4]
By 2006, Curro's enrollment numbers were almost 1,000 and a second campus Curro Langebaan Private School was built. [5] Curro Hazeldean Private School was the third school, opened in 2008. 2010 was a busy year and three schools were built, including Curro Roodeplaat, who twice found themselves in a racial controversy. The other two schools were Curro Bankenveld High and Curro Serengeti Preschool.
In 2011, Paladin Capital, a subsidiary of PSG Konsult, bought a 50% stake in Curro Holdings. [6]
In June 2011, when Curro Holdings was listed on the Alternative Exchange (AltX) of the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, [4] their stated intention was to have 40 schools and an enrollment of 45,000 by 2020. [7] In 2013, Curro moved into the post-school education environment and acquired Embury, [8] a private teacher education institution offering accredited teacher education qualifications.
In 2015, the Gauteng Department of Education [9] found that a Curro School [10] was segregating grade classed based on race. [11] Curro Online was launched in 2020, in response to Covid 19. [12] By 2020, this for-profit education chain, [13] had just under 60,000 enrolled students, 175 schools, and 76 campuses. [14] On the 1 March, the PSG Group Ltd (JSE : PSG) sold off a 63.6% stake in Curro Holdings Limited (JSE : COH) for ZAR 5.1 billion. [15] [16]
In 2024, Curo Holding's ancillary revenue was up by 12%, [17] which improved their profits, despite lower enrollment numbers. [18] Of the estimated 2282 Independent Schools, Curro owns approximately seven percent of this exclusive market. [19] As of February 2025, Curro’s enrollment numbers were just over 72 000. [20] A set of economic imperatives had successfully permeated the private school culture and market forces had commodified independent schools [1]
The 1996 South African Schools Act aimed to create uniformity and recognized two types of schools, state schools and independent schools. [21] Curro Holdings have recognized the range of customers and offer them eight choices
Globally, publicly listed Edu-schooling companies are not a common phenomenon, [22] but in South Africa they have become common as public education or state school continue to "fail". [23] Curro's intent is to make independent education more accessible. Curro holdings will either develop or acquires an independent school and then manage it. In the last few years, Curro have capitalized a range of different curriculum models. [24] The costs of developing new curriculum materials, subjects, and teaching methods are seen as intangible assets, since this content is sold separately. [24]
Curro may have set a legal precedent. in the case of and Another v Curro Holdings Ltd t/a Curro Academy Soshanguve and other (39189/2021) [2021] ZAGPPHC 498 (12 August 2021). [25] The non-payment of Private School fees is a breach of contract and parents have to remove the child from school. [26] The Independent Schools Association of Southern Africa (ISASA) held a different perspective who argued that any enrolment contract must first consider the bests interest of the child. [25]