1/16/2026
Prominent South African Investor in Hot Water With WeBuyCars
Daily Investor (01/16/26) Neethling, Bianke
Investor Albie Cilliers has alleged that WeBuyCars (WBC) sent him a legal letter requesting that he remove any public statements he has made about the company. This comes days after Cilliers claimed via social media that WeBuyCars refused to provide him with a copy of the company's securities register. Cilliers is a self-described activist investor and regularly comments on and analyses publicly listed companies via social media, particularly on X, formerly known as Twitter. On January 14, 2026, Cilliers said via X that he had received correspondence from legal representatives of a listed company regarding commentary he made on matters of public interest. “They demanded that I take down and/or delete 'any posts' relating to them,” Cilliers said, not naming the company involved. “I stand by the importance of open, good-faith discussion about public companies, while remaining willing to correct any factual errors if clearly demonstrated. I will not be engaging further via social media on this matter.” “Furthermore, if it was not already clear to most reasonable people on X, any witty reference to 'mafia' in a business context is used purely as a colloquial metaphor, without implying any criminality or illegality.” Cilliers did not name the company in this initial post, but a day later, on January 15, 2026, he posted a link to a Substack article he had authored, titled “Response to We Buy Cars legal demand.” In this article, Cilliers explains that he received legal correspondence from law firm ENS, acting on behalf of WeBuyCars, on January 13, 2026. This legal letter, Cilliers claimed, accused him of making false, misleading, or defamatory statements concerning WeBuyCars, and requested that he remove “any posts” referencing the company. In his Substack article, Cilliers included the response he sent to this letter, as well as the back-and-forth correspondence that followed. The legal letter came days after Cilliers claimed in a now-deleted post on X that WeBuyCars required payment of a Computershare administrative fee of R1,075.00 before a copy of the company’s securities register would be provided. In December 2025, Cilliers also posted a now-deleted thread on X regarding WeBuyCars’ acquisition of a 49% stake in the digital vehicle auction platform GoBid for R376.8 million. According to Cilliers, these statements prompted WeBuyCars, through ENS, to issue a legal letter, which allegedly accused him of making false or misleading statements in these posts. According to Cilliers’ Substack article, ENS’s letter did not identify any specific statement in the December thread which is alleged to be false, “nor does it set out the respects in which any such statement is said to be factually incorrect.” He said the letter requested that Cilliers remove any posts he had made related to WeBuyCars. In response to the initial letter, Cilliers denied making any false, misleading or defamatory statements regarding WeBuyCars, saying his posts constitute opinion, commentary and analysis on matters of public interest. He said that if WeBuyCars disputes any of the statements he made, particularly the above mentioned posts, the company is at liberty to state so. However, he said that he is prepared to consider correcting, clarifying, or removing any specific statement if WeBuyCars identifies the exact post and wording complained of and demonstrates why the statement is factually incorrect and not a protected opinion or fair comment. Cilliers disagreed with ENS’s blanket demand to remove “any posts” related to WeBuyCars, which he called “overbroad, unreasonable and inconsistent with lawful public commentary on matters of public interest.” According to Cilliers’ Substack article, ENS responded by saying that its client stands by its demands made in the first letter. The firm allegedly said that, should Cilliers fail to provide a written undertaking to comply with the demands made in the initial letter, it holds instructions to approach the High Court for urgent interdictory relief. “We further hold instructions to seek a punitive costs order against you for being forced to protect our client’s rights; and our client’s rights to institute an action for damages against you remain reserved too,” the firm allegedly wrote to Cilliers. In response, Cilliers reiterated his position that his statements did not constitute defamation and constituted fair comment on matters of public interest. He again expressed concern with the request to remove any posts related to the company, saying this would include posts dating back to early 2025. “In summary, I do not accept that the December thread is unlawful, that any urgent relief is warranted, or that the sweeping takedown demanded is sustainable,” he said. However, Cilliers explained that, in the interest of “starting 2026 fresh and focusing on what really matters,” he would be deleting the posts he made related to the securities register and the December thread. Neither of these posts currently appears on Cilliers’ X profile. Daily Investor reached out to WeBuyCars regarding the legal letter, and was told that the matter is sub judice and cannot be commented on at this stage.
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