Hits&Misses
Transaction Capital to raise R 1.25bn, but Heineken shrinks in SA
TRANSACTION Capital aims to raise as much as R1.25bn by issuing and selling shares in WeBuyCars before its planned unbundling and separate listing of the profitable second-hand car dealership on the JSE. By selling new shares to asset manager Coronation and investors to buy into WeBuyCars, the group will reduce its ownership from 74.9% to between 57% and 67%. Part of the money raised will go to repayment of the group’s R1.1bn debt.
TYMEBANK’s partnership with retail group TFG has reached 1-million bank account customers in just more than a year. The TymeBank TFG Money bank account, which can be opened at kiosks in more than 500 TFG stores nationwide, offers customers a range of financial products and services. TFG and TymeBank are also testing a personal loan offering. Since it launched in 2019, TymeBank has attracted 8.7-million customers.
South32’s board has approved capital expenditure of $2.16bn to develop the Taylor zinc-lead-silver deposit at its Hermosa project in Arizona, US, which is expected to start production in the second half of the group’s 2027 financial year and deliver nameplate production in 2030. Once in production, Taylor is expected to add 8% to group volumes and increase the supply of critical commodities.
HEINEKEN has written down the value of its South African business by R10bn as a result of inflation and a tough competitive environment, casting doubt on future earnings and the group’s cost of capital. The producer of alcoholic beverages said the impairments of its South African business amounted to €491m, or 16%, of the local business’s value. The Heineken Beverages SA business includes brands such as Amstel, Savanna, JC Le Roux, Windhoek and the former Distell brands.
LOWER sales volumes, a slowdown in the mining sector and a reduction in consumer demand have resulted in a 5% drop in revenue at Barloworld in the first four months of the 2024 financial year. The group said its Southern African equipment business was affected by lower machine sales, in line with an expected slowdown in mining activity. Barloworld is the official dealer for Caterpillar equipment, with operations in 16 countries.
COAL miner MC Mining has rebuffed a proposed buyout by a consortium of investors, labelling the offer as opportunistic and saying it undervalues the potential of its assets. The consortium, represented by Goldway Capital Investment, already holds 64% of MC Mining, which has a primary listing in Australia, as well as secondary listings on the JSE and the UK’s Alternative Investment Market.