A businessman and litigation funder has emerged as a recurring figure in the decades-long fight between Nkosana Makate and Vodacom over the "Please Call Me" service, following reporting on the origins of the funding that made the case possible.

As reported by ITWeb, Kevin Brian Jenkins was among an early group that raised R750,000 to help Makate pursue his claim, and until recently worked with Makate's attorney, Wilna Lubbe of Stemela Lubbe. In 2019 the late advocate Christiaan Schoeman told an arbitration that Jenkins introduced him to Makate and helped raise the funds alongside Schoeman, his former wife Wilma Schoeman, Errol Elsdon of Black Rock Mining and Tracey Roscher.

The composition of that original funding group matters because Elsdon is now claiming 40% of Makate's confidential Vodacom settlement, asserting that he provided R4.39 million. Lubbe and Makate contend the figure was at most R8,000. Elsdon testified that he first met Makate in 2011 alongside Schoeman and Jenkins, and that Schoeman signed a funding agreement that year in favour of a company to be nominated later — accepted by most courts as Black Rock, from mid-2013. A 2018 Pretoria High Court ruling by Judge Neil Tuchten placed Jenkins among the initial investors offered "equity in the venture."

Court records show other disputes involving Jenkins. In Odyssey Consultancy v Hurwitz, his company sued Dale Hurwitz over an unpaid fee; the court heard Jenkins had used senior counsel Cedric Puckrin's "name and reputation (and stature as a senior counsel)" to obtain payment, though Judge Ranchod found this "does not amount to the fraudulent misrepresentation" alleged and ruled in Odyssey's favour.

Jenkins resigned as a director of a company he shared with Lubbe on 18 August, days before the publication put questions to her. Lubbe said Jenkins was a client of the firm.

Manolete Partners has told shareholders that trading in the current financial year is running in line with board expectations, with realised revenues ahead of the prior year and continued growth in the value of its forward book.

As reported in a regulatory announcement issued ahead of the company's Annual General Meeting, the AIM-listed insolvency claims financier said: "The Group's trading performance has been positive and in-line with the Board's expectations for FY27. Realised revenues are ahead of the prior year, and the value of the Group's forward book has continued to increase, driven by growth in both the number and average value of new cases signed."

The reference to growth in both case volume and average case size is notable for a funder whose economics depend on the pipeline of insolvency claims it acquires or funds. The company said it intends to provide a more detailed update on first-half trading in early October, following the close of the period, and will announce its Half Year Results as usual in November. All resolutions put to the AGM were subsequently passed.

Manolete describes itself as the UK's leading insolvency claims financing company, operating in a market it values at over £500 million annually. The business has financed and completed more than 1,400 cases. It says it is the only company in the insolvency litigation funding section to have been ranked Band 1 in Chambers on six occasions, and a five-time winner of the 'Insolvency Litigation Funder of the Year' award at the TRI Awards.

The update was issued by Chief Executive Officer Mena Halton and Chief Financial Officer Will Sawyer. Canaccord Genuity acts as the company's Nominated Adviser and Sole Broker.