Who was Andrew Milne?

Andrew Milne was a South African fintech entrepreneur and the co-founder and co-chief executive of Kuunda, a lending-as-a-service platform for African banks and mobile-money operators. He previously led Virgin Life Care, Hello Doctor and Zoona.

How did Andrew Milne die?

The cause of death has not been made public. Kuunda's statement confirming his death did not disclose how he died.

Kuunda is a Mauritius-based fintech founded in 2018. Its name means "to create" in Swahili. It supplies technology that lets banks and mobile-money platforms offer short-term credit to their customers, and has said it has helped facilitate more than 4 billion dollars in loans.

Who founded Kuunda with Andrew Milne?

He co-founded the company with Sam Brawerman and Morne van der Westhuizen.

Was Andrew Milne married?

Yes. Kuunda's statement extended condolences to his wife, Alison, and their children, and asked that the family's privacy be respected.

What happened at Kuunda just before he died?

On 13 October 2026 Kuunda announced a 5 million dollar secondary share sale led by E4E Africa. Milne called it an important milestone. The company said he had celebrated that deal only days earlier.

Business

Andrew Milne

† 2026 · Fintech entrepreneur

“Co-founder of Kuunda, who built credit tools for Africa's mobile-money networks.”

Portrait: techcabal.com

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Andrew Milne was a South African fintech entrepreneur who spent more than three decades building health and financial technology businesses across Africa before co-founding Kuunda, a business-to-business lending platform that sits behind banks and mobile-money networks. He died on 13 October 2026 at the age of 54. Kuunda confirmed the…

Milne was managing director of the South African healthtech firm Virgin Life Care from 2004 to 2008, then chief executive of Hello Doctor from 2009 to 2015, expanding phone-based medical advice across ten African countries. From 2015 to 2017 he was chief operating officer of Zoona, a mobile-money company. Those roles shared a theme: delivering services to people who were poorly served by conventional branches and clinics.

In 2018 he co-founded Kuunda, a Mauritius-based company whose name means "to create" in Swahili, with Sam Brawerman and Morne van der Westhuizen. Rather than lending directly, Kuunda supplies the technology that lets banks, mobile-money operators and payment platforms embed short-term credit into services customers already use, scoring borrowers from transaction data. Partners have included M-PESA, Airtel and Wave. The firm has said it has helped facilitate more than 4 billion dollars in loans and serves about two million customers a month across Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Malawi, Mozambique, plus a South Asian market.

On 13 October 2026, the day of his death, Kuunda announced a 5 million dollar secondary share sale led by E4E Africa, with Accion Ventures, Portugal Gateway Fund and Seedstars Africa Ventures taking part. The deal gave early angels liquidity and cut the shareholder count from twelve to four. It followed a 7.5 million dollar pre-Series A round in October 2025. In the press release Milne called the secondary an important milestone that reflected the strength of the business. Colleagues later said he had celebrated that milestone only days earlier.

Kuunda described him as an energetic and resilient leader, much loved and deeply respected. He is survived by his wife, Alison, and their children. The company asked that the family's privacy be respected and said it would announce how it intends to honour his legacy in due course.

Biography adapted from TechCabal (Adonijah Ndege, 16 Oct 2026), Launch Base Africa (15 Oct 2026), Condia / Kenya Today reports, Kuunda LinkedIn statement.

In their own words

“Andy was an energetic and resilient leader. He was much loved and deeply respected by everyone who worked alongside him.”
Kuunda board statement on LinkedIn, October 2026

“An important milestone for Kuunda and our investors”
Milne on the 5 million dollar secondary share sale, company press release, 13 October 2026

Photos

Photo of Andrew Milne — by People Forever
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Tributes

Memories, thanks and farewells from the people Andrew touched.

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Nancy Kang

3h ago

my mom asked who he was when I showed her the headline, I just remembered that old clip of him talking about starting Kuunda. 54 is way too young.

Candles

10 people are remembering Andrew here. Every candle here is someone saying they were glad Andrew lived. No account needed; it takes a moment and it stays here.

Raymond Choi

3h ago

Hana Khoury

4h ago

Gail Fowler

6h ago

Ethan Wright

7h ago

Built something real that people needed. Rest well, Andy.

Abigail Young

7h ago

Bruna Silva

8h ago

Molly Allen

9h ago

Lea Girard

9h ago

Kuunda was his vision. Rest well, Andrew.

Death

Andrew Milne died on 13 October 2026 at the age of 54. Kuunda confirmed the date in a LinkedIn statement posted around 15 October and did not disclose a cause of death. The announcement came two days after the company completed a 5 million dollar secondary share sale that Milne had publicly called an important milestone. The board said Kuunda's next chapter would be written without him and that it would carry the business forward in a way that honoured what he started. Details of any funeral or memorial had not been made public at the time of writing.

Early life and background

Public reporting on Andrew Milne's early years is thin. He was South African and based for long stretches around Cape Town. Obituaries and company profiles emphasise his three decades of operating experience in African healthtech and fintech rather than schooling or childhood details. His colleagues called him Andy.

Career

Milne's operating career ran through health and money. As managing director of Virgin Life Care (2004-2008) he worked in South African healthtech. As CEO of Hello Doctor (2009-2015) he oversaw expansion of phone-based medical advice into ten African countries. As COO of Zoona (2015-2017) he worked in mobile money. In 2018 he co-founded Kuunda with Sam Brawerman and Morne van…

In 2018 he co-founded Kuunda with Sam Brawerman and Morne van der Westhuizen. The company designs lending-as-a-service infrastructure for banks and digital platforms, embedding e-float financing for agents, merchant cash advances and similar products into partner apps. Kuunda has said it has facilitated more than 4 billion dollars in loans through partners including M-PESA, Airtel and Wave, reaching about two million customers a month in East Africa plus a South Asian market.

Funding milestones included a 2.25 million dollar seed round led by Accion Venture Labs in 2021, a 7.5 million dollar pre-Series A in October 2025 (Nedbank, 4Di Capital and others), and a 5 million dollar secondary share sale announced on 13 October 2026. Milne also mentored founders through programmes such as Techstars and Startupbootcamp. In a 2025 interview with Techpoint Africa he called Kuunda a media-shy company.

Personal life

Milne is survived by his wife, Alison, and their children. Kuunda's statement asked that the family's privacy be respected. Beyond that, published notices give few personal details.

Legacy

Milne is remembered in African fintech for building the quiet infrastructure that lets mobile-money agents and small merchants borrow inside the apps they already use. Kuunda's loan volumes and partner list are the practical measure of that work. Colleagues and investors stressed his energy, commercial rigour and willingness to mentor other founders. The company said it would share plans to…

Questions people ask about Andrew

Who was Andrew Milne?: Andrew Milne was a South African fintech entrepreneur and the co-founder and co-chief executive of Kuunda, a lending-as-a-service platform for African banks and mobile-money operators. He previously led Virgin Life Care, Hello Doctor and Zoona.
When did Andrew Milne die?: He died on 13 October 2026 at the age of 54. Kuunda confirmed the date in a LinkedIn statement.
How did Andrew Milne die?: The cause of death has not been made public. Kuunda's statement confirming his death did not disclose how he died.
How old was Andrew Milne?: He was 54 years old.
What is Kuunda?: Kuunda is a Mauritius-based fintech founded in 2018. Its name means "to create" in Swahili. It supplies technology that lets banks and mobile-money platforms offer short-term credit to their customers, and has said it has helped facilitate more than 4 billion dollars in loans.
Who founded Kuunda with Andrew Milne?: He co-founded the company with Sam Brawerman and Morne van der Westhuizen.
Was Andrew Milne married?: Yes. Kuunda's statement extended condolences to his wife, Alison, and their children, and asked that the family's privacy be respected.
What happened at Kuunda just before he died?: On 13 October 2026 Kuunda announced a 5 million dollar secondary share sale led by E4E Africa. Milne called it an important milestone. The company said he had celebrated that deal only days earlier.

Written by People Forever from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0) and the reporting cited. Updated 16 October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.

Timeline

1 January 2004
Managing director of Virgin Life Care (to 2008)
1 January 2009
CEO of Hello Doctor (to 2015)
1 January 2015
COO of Zoona (to 2017)
1 January 2018
Co-founded Kuunda with Sam Brawerman and Morne van der Westhuizen
1 January 2021
Kuunda 2.25 million dollar seed round led by Accion Venture Labs
1 October 2025
Kuunda 7.5 million dollar pre-Series A announced
13 October 2026
Kuunda 5 million dollar secondary share sale announced; Milne dies aged 54
13 October 2026
Died
15 October 2026
Kuunda confirms his death in a LinkedIn statement

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