16th Mar 2020 14:56
(Alliance News) - Ninety One said it completed the demerger from Investec on Friday last week and has started trading on both London and Johannesburg stock exchanges on Monday.
Investec has been planning the demerger of its asset management business since late 2018, and in November last year it said the business would be called Ninety One.
In January, Investec said it would list Ninety One PLC on the London Main Market alongside an inward listing on the Johannesburg market. Ninety One Ltd shares will have their primary listing in South Africa.
Following the IPO, Investec was to hold a 15% stake, with 55% held directly by Investec PLC and Investec Ltd shareholders. Around 20% would be held by employees, and the rest by new investors.
However, Investec said on Thursday last week it will not be offering 10% of the combined issued share capital of Ninety One due to "recent volatile market conditions". It will now hold a 25% stake in Ninety One, rather than the 15% previously envisaged.
Stock markets around the world have crashed amid the continued spread of Covid-19, which has now been declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization.
On Monday, Ninety One said 622.6 million of its PLC shares were admitted to trading in London, while 240.1 million of its Ltd shares floated on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange.
Ninety One shares were trading 12% higher in London on Monday at 151.0 pence each, while in Johannesburg, the stock was untraded at ZAR35.31 a share.
"Today marks a historic moment for Ninety One. Despite extraordinary market volatility we are confident in the resilience of our capital-light business model and its organically developed, specialist, active investment offerings," said Ninety One Founder & Chief Executive Hendrik du Toit.
"The rationale behind the demerger was to simplify and focus both Investec and Ninety One. As Investec, we remain fully focused on achieving sustainable, long-term growth for the benefit of our clients, shareholders and stakeholders," added Investec CEO Fani Titi.
The name Ninety One refers to the founding of Investec Asset Management in 1991.
By Evelina Grecenko; [email protected]
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