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Makate in bid to scrap UK investor’s 40% claim to payout

Sowetan · · 635 words · By Sinesipho Schrieber
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Daily briefing

What to know about Makate in bid to scrap UK investor’s 40% claim to payout

Vodacom’s Please Call Me idea man, Nkosana Makate, has initiated a legal challenge in the high court in Pretoria to scrap a contract entitling UK investor Errol Elsdon to 40% of his multimillion-rand payout.

Claims checked 9
Techniques found 0
Topics 0

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage
Left0%
Center80%
Right20%

5 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Vodacom’s Please Call Me idea man, Nkosana Makate, has initiated a legal challenge in the high court in Pretoria to scrap a contract entitling UK investor Errol Elsdon to 40% of his multimillion-rand payout.

Why it matters

Elsdon, a former director of Black Rock Mining, registered in the British Virgin Islands, has a decade-long dispute with Makate, claiming his company had a contract to fund Makate’s litigation with Vodacom and in return would be entitled to 40% of the money…

Common ground

Makate entered into an agreement with the late Christian Schoeman to nominate a company, Black Rock, to pay for all his legal costs in 2011 in his 17-year battle with Vodacom to pay him for the incorporation of the “Please Call Me” service.

Perspective signals

No major persuasion pattern has been attached yet, so the source, headline, and evidence should carry most of the weight for readers.

open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.sowetan.co.za/news/2026-05-18-makate-in-bid-to-scrap-uk-investors-40…

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 9 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

info Single Source 3
verified Verified By Reference 3
check_circle Corroborated 2
help Insufficient Evidence 1
info
Claim 1: “Elsdon argued his company paid an initial R500,000 and a further R2.4m towards Makate’s fees”
SINGLE SOURCE
One source ('UK firm seeks 40% of Nkosana Makate’s $40.7m payday') specifically mentions the figures of R500,000 and R2.4 million as claimed by the funders/Makate's account of their claim. Other sources mention the 40% claim but not these specific figures.
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web search NEUTRAL — According to Makate, BRM initially said it raised R500,000 ($29,000) for his legal costs in 2011, followed by a further R2.4 million ($140,000). But he says the only direct payment he ever received ca…
https://www.billionaires.africa/2025/11/18/uk-firm-seeks-40-…
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web search NEUTRAL — Over R100 million in the balance. Errol Elsdon, former funder of Nkosana Makate. Elsdon’s claim followed Makate and Vodacom’s announcement that they had settled their legal battle, which spanned 18 ye…
https://mybroadband.co.za/news/cellular/627621-final-fight-f…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Makate further labelled the demand for 40% of the settlement as a disgrace. “Black Rock now wishing to share in the spoils is an utter disgrace.” Litigation funders are third parties with no direct in…
https://www.citizen.co.za/business/fight-for-please-call-me-…
verified
Claim 2: “The company was deregistered in April 2014 after failing to file financial statements.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
The provided evidence contains general information about company deregistration in India, a Black Label Society album released in 2014, and the American company BlackRock Inc. There is no specific evidence confirming that Black Rock Mining was deregistered in April 2014 for failing to file financial statements.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — BlackRock, Inc. is an American multinational investment company. Founded in 1988, initially as an enterprise risk management and fixed income institutional asset manager, BlackRock is the world's larg…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BlackRock
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Catacombs of the Black Vatican is the ninth studio album by American heavy metal band Black Label Society. The album was released in the UK on April 7, 2014, and in the US on April 8. It is the only B…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catacombs_of_the_Black_Vatican
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Black Keys are an American rock duo formed in Akron, Ohio, in 2001. The group consists of Dan Auerbach (guitar, vocals) and Patrick Carney (drums). The duo began as an independent act, recording m…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Black_Keys
+ 3 more evidence sources
verified
Claim 3: “Black Rock was deregistered and had cash-flow troubles [in 2015]”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
The evidence provided for this claim consists of general articles on cash flow, Kindle deregistration, and Wikipedia entries for the American company BlackRock Inc., which is a different entity from Black Rock Mining. No evidence confirms the deregistration or cash-flow troubles of Black Rock Mining in 2015.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Black Rock Shooter (ブラック★ロックシューター, Burakku Rokku Shūtā), often stylized as Black★Rock Shooter, is a Japanese media franchise based on independent character illustrations created by artist Ryohei Fuke,…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Rock_Shooter
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — BlackRock, Inc. is an American multinational investment company. Founded in 1988, initially as an enterprise risk management and fixed income institutional asset manager, BlackRock is the world's larg…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BlackRock
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Black Rock, Blackrock, Black Rocks, etc. may refer to:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Rock
+ 3 more evidence sources
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Claim 4: “Elsdon, a former director of Black Rock Mining, registered in the British Virgin Islands”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent web search results confirm that Errol Elsdon was a director of Black Rock Mining and that the company was registered in the British Virgin Islands.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Errol Elsdon, director of the Sterling Rand Litigation Fund and former funder of Nkosana Makate. The team decided to house the matter in an offshore entity, Black Rock Mining, registered in the Britis…
https://mybroadband.co.za/news/cellular/620885-former-backer…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Black Rock guns for Vodacom payout in dispute over Nkosana Makate’s contract termination.An urgent application initiated by Errol Elsdon, former director of Black Rock Mining, will be heard on Tuesday…
https://www.dailydispatch.co.za/news/2025-11-17-please-call-…
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web search NEUTRAL — Errol Elsdon, the company's former director, argued that the company is entitled to R650 million and that Makate's lawyers were not entitled to settle without the company's written consent.
https://briefly.co.za/south-africa/234558-please-call-black-…
help
Claim 5: “The case has not yet been heard by the court.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was provided for this claim.
check_circle
Claim 6: “Makate entered into an agreement with the late Christian Schoeman to nominate a company, Black Rock, to pay for all his legal costs in 2011”
CORROBORATED
Two independent news sources confirm that Makate entered into a funding agreement in November 2011 with the late Christiaan Schoeman, who was to nominate a company (Black Rock) to fund legal costs.
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — This article displays the various political parties' party candidate lists for the 2024 South African general election. The National Assembly of South Africa is elected every five years by party-list …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Party_lists_for_the_2024_South…
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web search NEUTRAL — Nkosana Kenneth Makate’s original legal funder, Black Rock Mining, has asked the Pretoria Society of Advocates to appoint an arbitrator to hear its argument that it is entitled to 40% of his multi-mil…
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/please-call-me-legal-funders-…
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web search NEUTRAL — Nkosana Makate.Makate has described his meeting with Black Rock in 2011 as one of the “most unfortunate incidents” of his life. Errol Elsdon, Black Rock’s former director, said in his affidavit that h…
https://www.citizen.co.za/business/makate-reaches-agreement-…
+ 1 more evidence source
verified
Claim 7: “Nkosana Makate, has initiated a legal challenge in the high court in Pretoria to scrap a contract entitling UK investor Errol Elsdon to 40% of his multimillion-rand payout.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
The provided evidence for claim 0 consists of troubleshooting guides for Bluetooth and a general Wikipedia entry for Vodacom. There is no evidence provided in the search results that mentions Makate initiating a legal challenge in the Pretoria High Court to scrap the contract with Elsdon.
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Vodacom Group Limited is a South African mobile communications company, providing voice, messaging, data and converged services to over 130 million customers across Africa. From its roots in South Afr…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vodacom
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — This article covers most common issues related to Bluetooth such as Bluetooth not pairing, Bluetooth audio issues, missing Bluetooth and more, along with step-by-step troubleshooting solutions for eac…
https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/fix-bluetooth-pr…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — These issues can occur when Bluetooth is turned on but the device is not in pairing mode, is out of range, has a low battery, or is experiencing driver, service, or update-related problems. Try the fo…
https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/troubleshoot-blu…
+ 1 more evidence source
info
Claim 8: “When Black Rock was deregistered, the agreement was transferred to another company, Raining Men Trade, also owned by Elsdon.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The evidence provided for this claim consists of dictionary definitions and Wikipedia entries for the word 'following' and a Christopher Nolan film. There is no evidence regarding the transfer of an agreement to 'Raining Men Trade'.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Following is a 1998 British independent neo-noir crime thriller film written, produced, directed, photographed, and edited by Christopher Nolan in his feature film directorial debut.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Following
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — May 11, 2026 · The meaning of FOLLOWING is being next in order or time. How to use following in a sentence.
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/following
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Grammar Following or the following? We use following without the + noun phrase to mean ‘after’, ‘in response to’ or ‘as a result of’: …
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/followin…
info
Claim 9: “That process was found to have been fraudulent, with an arbitrator finding that the only valid agreement was with Black Rock.”
SINGLE SOURCE
One source ('Nkosana Makate's Legal Team Calls Out Black Rock... - Briefly.co.za') mentions that the nomination was changed to Raining Men Trade and that Makate's team alleged forgery. However, the evidence does not explicitly confirm an arbitrator's ruling that the transfer was fraudulent, only that the legal team 'cries foul'.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Black Rock Mining was later nominated, but this was changed to Raining Men Trade, another entity. Makate's legal team cries foul. Makate alleged that Raining Men Trade forged his signature on the 2011…
https://briefly.co.za/south-africa/234558-please-call-black-…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — All rights belong to their respective owners. Digitally remastered and AI Full HD 1080 Upscaled.Music video by Geri Halliwell performing It's Raining Men.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKkQF-p4a6I
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — That power is vested completely with the appointed arbitrator under Section 16. Next, he referred to the Stamp Act. In NN Global Datar submitted, the majority ventured into the correctness of the agre…
https://www.scobserver.in/journal/validity-of-an-unstamped-a…
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.