Mind the gap

19 March 2021 By Ed Cropley, Peter Thal Larsen Follow @edwardcropley

Despite listing a Dutch subsidiary in 2019, the South African company still trades at a big discount to its $239 bln stake in the Chinese internet giant. Its inability and unwillingness to sell are enduring factors. An outsize weight on the Johannesburg bourse is easier to fix.

This content is for Subscribers only

Context News

A three-year lockup preventing South Africa’s Naspers disposing of any more of its 31% stake in Chinese internet giant Tencent expires on March 21.

The Johannesburg-listed company spun off its international assets, including the Tencent stake, into Amsterdam-listed Prosus in September 2019 to try to reduce the difference between its net asset value and market capitalisation.

Naspers retains a 72.6% stake in Prosus, which also holds stakes in technology ventures such as Delivery Hero, Mail.ru and Trip.com.

Prosus said on Oct. 30 it would buy back up to $5 billion of its own and Naspers’ stock to try to narrow its valuation discount.

Email a friend

Please complete the form below.

Required fields *