South Africa's former finance and labour minister and first Black central bank governor Tito Mboweni has died aged 65 following a brief illness, the presidency said late on Saturday.

Tito Mboweni has passed away at 65, with President Cyril Ramaphosa hailing his contributions to South Africa and his unique presence on social media.

Tito Mboweni, who as the first Black governor of the South African Reserve Bank was heralded by financial markets and business for keeping tight fiscal controls on the nation’s public spending, has died.

The first black central bank governor of South Africa, who later went on to become finance minister, has died at the age of 65. Tito Mboweni had suffered a "short illness", the presidency confirmed on Saturday evening,