This year's News24 Company of the Year is Shoprite Group, Africa's largest supermarket retailer. 

Accepting the award, Group CEO Pieter Engelbrecht said the award was a symbol of "ordinary people doing the extraordinary". 

"For me, Shoprite is not a retailer, it's an institution," he said, adding: "I can think of all the negatives if it doesn't exist, and how many people are dependent on Shoprite and what it does, and why it is an institution."

The News24 Business Awards were designed to recognise companies and CEOs who are doing excellent work in building their businesses, while also going above and beyond in communication, transparency and contributing to South Africa.

The award was decided by scrutinising JSE-listed businesses that delivered the best shareholder returns over the medium term.

From a list of contenders, the News24 Business team assessed companies' transparency in communication and corporate responsibility.

"We then looked at businesses that pushed new frontiers in their industries while delivering on operational effectiveness," said News24 Business editor Helena Wasserman.

"One company stood out. It has truly changed the local landscape – it revolutionised online shopping and home delivery, along with building a range of new businesses and upending traditional ways of doing things in these sectors.

"The group is dealing with the realities of doing business in South Africa with innovative approaches in areas of artificial intelligence, renewable energy and security management."