Know your 'why': How star CA Ntebaleng Twala ended up managing a R65 billion portfolio

Ntebaleng Twala is making a name for herself not only as one of South Africa's leading young chartered accountants (CAs), but as a professional helping young people to find and succeed in the best careers for themselves.

Currently the Head of Finance for PPB Unsecured Lending at Standard Bank, overseeing a staggering R65 billion portfolio, she is simultaneously driving initiatives that empower women and youth across South Africa.

Twala's most recent accolade is recognition in her field as the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA) Top 35 under 35 Overall Winner in 2025.

Her commitment to youth development led her to establish the Edu Snapper Foundation in 2018, which exposes students from underprivileged schools to diverse careers, mentorship, and life coaching.

The star CA's own background sees her growing up with her primary school teacher mother and bus driver father in Mabopane township outside Pretoria.

As a schoolkid who'd never heard of the profession of chartered accounting, with a dream of becoming a doctor, Twala would never have believed she'd land up with an MBA (specialising in Law) from the University of London, and completing executive programmes at Oxford’s Saïd Business School and the London School of Economics.

It was Twala's mom who urged her to pursue a CA qualification, when she heard about the career and its opportunities on the radio. And today, she says, her mom still reminds her that she was right.

"At school I focused on the sciences so that I could apply to study medicine... so you can imagine in my first year of a B.Com at the University of Johannesburg it was like hearing a foreign language. I had to learn what a debit is, amortisation... I looked at encyclopedias at the library to find out what a balance sheet is!"

What helped her was surrounding herself with friends who were top students in accounting, and this kind of collaboration has carried her throughout her career journey, Twala says.

Another lesson she learned was the value of discipline, when she failed her CTA postgraduate studies on the first try.

"It is a brutal course. When we got into the lecture hall, they said 'look to your left, look to your right - only one person is going to make it."

But the tenacious student persevered, and eventually of course did make it to launch a hugely successful career.

"You can imagine that humbling experience of seeing your peers moving forward. That was my first experience of failure, but I understood the power and influence that comes with the career - during the first lecture they said that with this profession you could be anything you want."

"It was one thing I knew, that this tool creates access for me and, as someone who from a young age had been limited, it was like I was craving to not always be limited... and also making sure that I look at not approaching things with fear."

When you are driven by fear, Twala says, you get to a point where you end up doubting yourself. And when she finally got her CTA qualification, she realised the growth she'd experienced and how it had helped her become who she is today.

Along with discipline, she highlights the value of knowing your "why".

Twala says the following quote from Viktor E Frankl is something she now lives by:

"Those who have a 'why' to live, can bear with almost any 'how'.”

Another important ethos informing her career journey is to bring other people along in her learning, bringing to life that childhood driver of helping and impacting your community.

Scroll up to the audio player to listen to this inspiring interview with CA Ntebaleng Twala