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Platinum Wealth

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Everything posted by Platinum Wealth

  1. Link to tweet: https://twitter.com/davidshapiro61/status/1018850055229526016 Been watching the steady decline in Blu Label but today looks like those who were hanging on capitulated. Down another 5%. Trouble at Cell C? Or what?
  2. Interesting tweet https://twitter.com/coinbase/status/1013786794700070912
  3. I love this company, I bought my SO the Fitbit charge 2 a couple of months ago to help her watch her heart rate and sleep patterns during training etc. I was so impressed, I bought myself a Fitbit Charge 2 yesterday and damn is this some incredible tech packed into such a small device. For those who do not own one, it tracked your heart rate every second continuously during the day -- that is the coolest feature for me, it also counts your steps and tracks your sleep patterns which are the other main reason I bought it.
  4. We also use the Bloomberg watchlist, there is also investing.com which is nice.
  5. 6 bothers me, this country does not have the skill to pull that off securely.
  6. 1. End of co-payments The first major amendment includes the abolishment of co-payments – which effectively means that medical schemes will be required to pay for the full amount charged to a patient. “Some people will scream that this amendment is callous and outrageous, and calculated to destroy the medical sector and leave beneficaries with nothing. We have heard about this before. I wish to assure you that this was well thought of, and the load of complaints received by the department of health as well as the council of medical schemes justifies this amendment,” he said. “Furthermore the data at our disposal shows that medical schemes are holding in reserve close to R60 billion that is not being used.” 2. Abolishment of brokers Motsoaledi said that the Medical Aid Scheme Amendment Bill will abolish the role of brokers, as almost two-thirds of medical schemes clients pay R2.2 billion to brokers without their knowledge. He added that the number of people joining medical schemes has remained relatively static over the last 15 years, bringing into question what role brokers actually play in the system. 3. Abolishment of Prescribed Minimum Benefits Motsoaledi said that the third amendment is the abolishment of Prescribed Minimum Benefits (PMBs) – which are set to be replaced with comprehensive service benefits. He said that comprehensive service benefits would include services such as family planning, vaccinations and screening services which are not necessarily paid for by schemes under the current system. 4. Addresses unequal benefit options Motsoaledi said that this amendment prevents any medical scheme from implementing any benefit option, unless the option has been approved by the Registrar of the Council of Medical Schemes. In doing this the Registrar will have to determine if the benefit is in the best interest of the member, rather than any other party, he said. 5. Offence for ‘fake’ medical schemes The fifth amendment makes it an offence for a business to label itself as a medical scheme should it not meet the current prescribed requirements under the Act. “This relates to various health and cash plans which are flashed all over our TV and radios which sell products similar to medical schemes but are not properly registered with the correct authorities,” he said. 6. Creation of a central beneficiary registry This enables the Registrar of Medical Schemes to understand the trends and behaviors of consumers when they are selecting a medical scheme. This will include the age, disease, and geographical profiles of members but excludes any of their personal information, Motsoaledi said, in an effort to gather more information for the incoming NHI. He added that medical schemes currently do not surface any of this information. 7. Income cross-subsidisation model In-line with the NHI, Motsoaledi said that medical schemes must now also ensure that the rich help subsidise the poor, the young must subsidise the old, and the healthy must subsidise the sick. “At the present moment we want to argue very strongly that it is the other way round. The present contribution table charges lower and higher-income patients the same amount for benefits, which is not the way the world should be,” Motsoaledi said. Motsoaledi did not provide any immediate details on exactly how the current system may change, however. 8. Medical Aids must ‘pass back’ savings In-line with the fact that medical schemes should not be for profit, Motsoaledi said that any cost-savings should be passed on to patients. “Presently medical aid schemes compel members to visit designated service providers in order to save money,” he said. “However these savings are taken over by the scheme or administrator instead of being passed onto the members in the form of premium reductions.” 9. Cancellation of membership After joining a scheme there is a time frame during which members have to pay before they are allowed to benefit. However Motsoaledi said this was problematic as some members were being forced to keep paying even after cancelling their membership. In addition, there are also penalties for joining schemes later in life, which Motsoaledi said will now be abolished under this Act and under the incoming NHI. 10. Governance of medical aid schemes This amendment will mean that there are now minimum education requirements before someone is allowed to join a board of or become a CEO of a medical aid scheme, Motsoaledi said. Motsoaledi said this was to prevent these persons from ‘just listening to whatever the principle officer is saying’, rather than the other way round. Both bills will be made available for public comment, following which, further changes may be made. The full document is embedded below, or can be downloaded here (41726).
  7. Anyone using it? How does it compare to 22seven?
  8. Axe murderer Henri van Breda has been sentenced to three life sentences for the murder of three of his family members, 15 years for the attempted murder of his sister, and one year for obstructing the course of justice. The sentences will run concurrently. Shortly after sentencing, Van Breda indicated he would appeal his conviction and sentences. A date was set down for June 27. Judge Siraj Desai said: "These attacks display a high level of innate cruelty and an almost unprecedented disregard for the welfare of one's own family, one's parents and siblings. Each murderous attack upon a family member constitutes a very serious crime, warranting the severest penalty possible. "Viewing all these acts cumulatively, it must rank extremely high on the ladder of serious crime." He also said no argument had been advanced to mitigate the impact of the crime. "The violence was excessive and gratuitous. "We have no explanation from you. No substantial and compelling circumstances have been placed before us. There appeared to be none," Desai said. Crimes premeditated Van Breda was last month found guilty of murdering his parents and brother, attempting to kill his sister and obstructing the course of justice. Desai had listened to arguments from the State and the defense in mitigation and aggravation on Tuesday during sentencing proceedings. He said he considered the crimes to have been premeditated, as Van Breda would have had to arm himself before bludgeoning Rudi, Martin, and Teresa to death and trying to murder Marli. Premeditated murder carries a prescribed sentence of life imprisonment. Prosecutor Susan Galloway had argued that there were no substantial and compelling circumstances which would warrant deviating from the prescribed minimum sentence. Van Breda showed no remorse, Galloway had insisted, and Marli had survived because of a miracle, not because of mercy was shown by her brother. There was no prescribed sentence for attempted murder and the State argued that a sentence similar to the one for his parents' and brother's murders be handed down for the attack on Marli as it was committed during the same incident with the same weapon and intent. Defense lawyer advocate Pieter Botha said his client had no previous convictions and had been young at the time of the brutal killings. Van Breda maintains his innocence. Source: News24
  9. He is nice yea, should have listened to him when he warned me against Taste Holdings.
  10. Online advertising is necessary for small and large businesses alike, but small business advertising is decidedly more difficult. Your staff is smaller, and your marketing budgets are smaller too. How do you compete with bigger businesses under the circumstances? The good news is that Platinum Wealth encourages and supports the creation, growth, and development of small businesses in South Africa. Therefore, we decided to open the Marketplace up for small business owners to advertise their business free of charge. We also want to offer job seekers a way to get noticed, so our Marketplace will now also be open to job seekers to showcase their skills and increase their chances of being employed. This is aimed at helping to solve the unemployment crisis in South Africa by enabling job seekers to get their skills and talents in front of potential employers. RULES Business owners: You must have been registered for longer than 3 days and have a minimum of five posts. You may bump your thread every two weeks. You must use the business template. Put your business name e.g., “Burger Fair Bellville” or business initials e.g., “BF” in the Title of your thread. All posts without the business name or business initials will be deleted. Job Seekers: You must have been registered for 3 days and have a minimum of four posts. Do not post your CV. Do not post your personal details. Do not post salary and rates. Use the job seeker template. Prospective Clients, Employers and Forum Members: Do not post in the thread, discuss it via a private message. Notify either myself, @padjakkels or @Bandit if you feel a thread is inappropriate. Template: Please copy and paste the following Template and then fill it in. If you want to advertise your business Service/Product Description: Location: About us: Links (optional): Use this sub forum. If you are seeking employment Job description: Location or telecommuting: Permanent or part-time: Junior, intermediary or senior: Availability: Experience: Technologies: About me: What I am looking for: Links (optional): Use this sub forum. Please take note that posts not following the guidelines and/or template will be deleted. South Africa needs entrepreneurs and Platinum Wealth is determined to promote entrepreneurship and develop small enterprises by providing business support services like these - which results in business growth and sustainability.
  11. http://variety.com/2018/music/news/avicii-dead-at-28-1202772767/
  12. We were fortunate enough to be at the InvestSure launch were EasyEquities introduced an insurance option for individual stocks on their system. We walked through the process and found it incredibly innovative. The purpose is to protect you from losses arising from deceptive or misleading acts of directors & management. You will be covered for a 12 month period when you'll have the choice to renew the insurance for another 12 months period etc. They'll pay out the difference between what price you sold at and at what price you bought it at. So you have no capital loss. Screenshot of how it works on EasyEquities What is Investsure? Based in Johannesburg, InvestSure is a new insurance product that insures listed shares bought on participating trading platforms, against losses arising out of the deceptive or misleading acts of management of the company.
  13. SA’s 14th-largest company by market value will get its secondary listing on A2X Markets on Monday, which will be this bourse’s first large-cap listing. The move will deliver a fivefold increase to A2X’s market capitalisation and make the challenger exchange a far bigger threat to the JSE. Insurance group Sanlam would take a secondary listing on the exchange on Monday, A2X Markets said. With a market value of R181.9bn, Sanlam was the country’s 14th-largest listed company on Thursday, behind Old Mutual and MTN, but ahead of Barclays Africa Group and Shoprite. Sanlam’s secondary listing, which follows the likes of Coronation, Afrimat, African Rainbow Capital Investments and Huge Group, will take A2X’s total market value from R47.1bn to about R229bn. This is still a fraction of the JSE all share index, with a market value of R11.6-trillion, but many times the size of rivals, ZAR X and 4 Africa Exchange. What it means Moreover, Sanlam’s secondary listing on A2X means shareholders can now choose to trade their shares on that bourse rather than on the JSE. This is significant, considering that Sanlam is one of the JSE’s most liquid stocks and that A2X claims its trading costs are "upwards of 40% cheaper" than its larger rival. Four of the country’s largest stockbrokers, SBG Securities, Peregrine Securities, RMB Morgan Stanley and Investec Securities, are already trading on A2X. A2X had observed narrower bid-offer spreads (the difference between the price to buy and the price to sell a stock) on its stocks compared with those of their JSE-listed equivalents, said CEO Kevin Brady. This was entirely a function of its lower cost to trade, which benefited stockbrokers and investors. Stockbrokers and shareholders can now verify these claims, as real-time data coverage of securities listed on A2X went live on the Bloomberg terminal on Thursday. This was important in providing "full visibility of price and volume activity on A2X", as the majority of industry participants in SA used the Bloomberg terminal, Brady said. "This will empower the industry to achieve best execution when transacting in listed securities across multiple exchanges," he said. In markets such as the US, where multiple large exchanges have existed for some time, brokers are legally required to seek the best execution reasonably available for their customers’ orders. Factors to be considered include price, speed of execution and the likelihood that the trade will be executed. However, this is not yet law in SA. Sanlam CEO Ian Kirk said the group’s A2X listing was in the interests of its shareholders and "provides an opportunity to participate in the ongoing development and overall growth of South Africa’s capital markets". Sanlam’s longstanding black economic empowerment partner, Ubuntu-Botho Investments, is an indirect shareholder in A2X through its stake in the Patrice Motsepe-backed African Rainbow Capital Investments, which holds a 20% stake in A2X. It is 51.6% owned by African Rainbow Capital, which is in turn wholly owned by Ubuntu-Botho. Brady said he was confident the listing of a company of Sanlam’s calibre would attract other issuers. A2X expected to list a mid-cap industrial company at the end of April. Source: Businesslive
  14. From @JuniorBuffett Busy checking out insurance on shares, being launched on the @EasyEquities platform. Costs at 0.56% of the investment amount. Not confirmed. @InvestsureZA Covering events like Steinhoff etc.
  15. Sagarmatha Technologies, the umbrella company that was hoping to unite the various groups in Iqbal Survé's media empire under a new roof, will not be listing on the JSE Friday as scheduled. "On 10 April 2018 at 14:00, the Company received a letter from the JSE giving notice to the company that the listing could no longer proceed," said Sagarmatha in a shareholder statement on Wednesday afternoon. The company said it had been informed by the JSE that it could not list on the local bourse because it had not submitted the correct financial statements in time. The stock exchange said it had not its submitted its annual financial statements to the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission in time for the listing to go ahead, although Sagarmatha claimed it had. In addition, the JSE said it failed to release the interim results of the company for the 12 months ending 31 December 2017 by the due date of April 9. "The company is disappointed that the JSE has made a decision that the listing cannot proceed," it said. "Regrettably therefore due to the JSE’s decision, the company cannot continue with the listing on the 13th of April 2018.""The company will consult with its advisors and consider its next steps." 'Commitments exceeding R4bn' In a separate statement, also released on Wednesday, Sagarmatha said that it received "indicative commitments for this listing exceeding R4bn, therefore comfortably meeting the minimum listing requirements of the JSE". The technology and media group was hoping to announce Wednesday that it had raised up to R7.5bn in the placement of 189 million of its 1.2 billion shares. It previously said that about R1bn would be used to pay off debt. It was also aiming to use the private placement proceeds to roll out three additional regional offices in Africa, finance growth strategies, improve its current platforms and buy new technology businesses. "However, due to the JSE withdrawal of the listing notice, Sagarmatha Technologies is legally bound not to accept these applications from its committed investors. Sagarmatha Technologies was hopeful it could resolve this issue with the regulator and requested the extension of a new listing date. However, the JSE has requested the company make provision for a fresh listing application." Sagarmatha’s current assets include majority stakes in news wire agency ANA, e-commerce retailer Loot, IOL Property and online news site IOL. It was also aiming to buy all the shares in Sekunjalo Independent Media, the holding company that owns a 55% stake in newspaper publisher Independent Media, owner of the Cape Times, the Star and other newspapers. Sagarmatha previously said that it would have bought these shares by the time it lists on the JSE. The way forward Sagarmatha said that its board would consider a number of options after its listing was shelved. These include offers to purchase "its four largest businesses" by unnamed international investors, and possible listings on the New York Stock Exchange, the Hong Kong Stock Exchange or again on the JSE. It also again hit out at how rival media groups covered the runup to the listing, saying it had been the subject of a "disinformation campaign". "As with all pioneering moves, boldness is subject to a lot of analysis, and in this case, also vast misunderstanding. This unfamiliarity sadly lent itself to a focus on Independent Media, rather than on the greater picture Sagarmatha Technologies as a whole, represents," it said. Source: Fin24
  16. What is the consensus about Sagarmatha Technologies? Scam or are you guys taking the gamble?
  17. Chinese President Xi Jinping has warned against a "Cold War mentality" as he vowed to open up parts of the country's economy. His speech at the Boao Forum for Asia - often referred to as Asia's Davos - appears to be an attempt to calm a trade row with the US. He pledged to cut import tariffs on cars and relax requirements for foreign firms investing in China. But there were few specifics on when the changes would happen. 'Zero-sum game' Mr Xi made no specific references to the ongoing spat with the Washington which has seen both sides announce tit-for-tat plans to slap tariffs on imports. But in a veiled swipe at US President Donald Trump's America First stance, Mr Xi called for openness. "Human society is facing a major choice to open or close, to go forward or backward," Mr Xi said to the audience made up mainly of Chinese and international investors. "In today's world, the trend of peace and cooperation is moving forward and a Cold War mentality and zero-sum game thinking are outdated. "Paying attention only to one's own community without thinking of others can only lead into a wall. And we can only achieve win-win results by insisting on peaceful development and working together." President Trump, whose plan to hit hundreds of Chinese products with duties have stoked fears of a trade war, has yet to react. Washington claims China has failed to fulfil earlier promises to open up the economy - including putting up barriers to international companies accessing markets and forcing investors to form joint ventures and hand over intellectual property. Xi seeing himself as 'the adult in the room' Analysis by Karishma Vaswani, Asia Business Correspondent China's President Xi Jinping likes to position himself as the champion of globalisation. He consistently does that when he's making speeches at international forums. And what better time to do that than now, against the backdrop of the ongoing US-China trade row. President Xi says a cold war and zero sum mentality are out of place and that dialogue is the way to resolve disputes. What he most likely means by that of course - although he never specifically says it - is that US President Trump's recent rhetoric on trade and unfair practices by China aren't in keeping with the way reasonable adults should behave. In contrast to the bluster and fiery barbs evident in President Trump's tweets, President Xi put forward the face of a new China, and announced steps to make China's economy more open. Amongst the things he talked about included lowering import tariffs for vehicles, and improving transparency, and intellectual property rights protection. He also said China genuinely doesn't want a trade surplus. But while on the surface the promises sound grand, some of this is stuff we've heard before. So it's hard to see just how much more access China will give foreign firms in reality. But will President Trump see President Xi's conciliatory speech as a sign that he's won some concessions for the US side? Wait for his next tweet! Beijing Deals There was $462.6bn worth of goods bought by the US from China in 2016. 18.2% of all China's exports go to the United States $129bn worth of China-made electrical machinery bought by US 59.2% growth in Chinese services imported by US between 2006 & 2016 $347bn US goods trade deficit with China Source: BBC UK
  18. The Financial Sector Conduct Authority replaces the FSB, and the banking supervision department at the Reserve Bank becomes the Prudential Authority. Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene has set in motion processes to disband the Financial Services Board (FSB) as well as unbundle the banking supervision department from the Reserve Bank. The FSB will be replaced by a new body called the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA), while the banking supervision department will be located within a new regulator called the Prudential Authority (PA). Dubbed the ‘Twin Peaks regulatory system’, the model was approved by Cabinet in 2011, and it aims “to create a safer financial sector that works effectively in the interests of all South Africans, by reducing potential threats to the financial system and providing better protection to financial customers”. In a statement released by Treasury, it was announced that the FSCA, the FSB’s replacement, will “supervise how financial institutions conduct their business and treat customers”. The new body is also tasked with “improving customer protection in the financial sector, and driving better customer outcomes, ensuring that the sector serves South Africans best”. The Prudential Authority (PA), a new entity linked to the Reserve Bank, “will be responsible for the safety and soundness of banks, insurers and other financial institutions”. The transition period will affect entities currently reporting to the FSB, such the office of the Financial Services (Fais) ombudsman. Over the weekend, National Treasury released job adverts for the commissioner and deputy commissioner of the FSCA, while the deputy governor of the Reserve Bank will be in charge of the PA. Addressing FSCA staff members last week, Nene assured them the transition would be painless and that the FSB board chairperson was currently the chairperson of a transitional management committee to oversee FSB to FSCA. In terms of the transition period, the FSCA will inherit existing investigations and inspections carried over from the FSB period and matters being heard by the FSB enforcement committee and appeals board will be seen to conclusion. The current members of the FSB appeal board, the board of review and the FIC appeal board will be appointed to constitute the Financial Services Tribunal for a period of three years to be chaired by retired Constitutional Court Justice Yvonne Mokgoro. An ombudsman council is to be created in terms of the FSR Act, effective from October 1, to allow for sufficient time for appointments to be made. The council will oversee all the ombudsman offices reporting to the FSB. “The FSR Act does not affect the composition and establishment of the statutory ombuds. One change is that the ombuds had previously reported to the FSB Board as their oversight body. As this board no longer exists the independent governance committees established to perform over of the Financial Sector Conduct Authority will similarly perform oversight over the statutory ombuds,” Treasury said in an emailed statement. Source: The Citizen
  19. Former president Jacob Zuma's adviser fraudster Schabir Shaik and French arms manufacturer Thales formed a common purpose to bribe the former president through a series of payments. This was revealed in the 89-page indictment released by the National Prosecuting Authority this week. The State said Zuma had benefited in the period of October 25, 1995, to July 2005 through 783 payments totaling R4 072 499.85. "This was by way of payments from Shaik and/or relevant corporate entities within the Nkobi group (controlled by Shaik) and/or the other relevant corporate entities to accused one (Zuma) and various parties for the benefit of accused one," read the indictment. Zuma appeared in the KwaZulu-Natal High Court in Durban on Friday, April 6, along with his co-accused, Thales, which was represented by Christine Guerrier. Guerrier had traveled from Paris to attend the case. No business sense Zuma as accused number one faces charges of fraud, money laundering, corruption and racketeering. The former president had the support of senior ANC KwaZulu-Natal and former Cabinet ministers when he appeared last Friday. The case was postponed to June 8. The indictment says the common purpose between Zuma, Shaik and Nkobi group was formed on or before October 25, 1995. However, the State says the scheduled payments to Zuma do not make any legitimate business sense. It alleges that neither Shaik nor the Nkobi group could afford the payments, as they were at all times in a "cash-starved position" and at times relied on bank overdrafts and borrowing money from banks at prevailing interest rates – to make the payments interest free. The State also said the group's survival depended on obtaining profitable new business. It also said whether the loans were affordable or not, it was not the Nkobi group's legitimate business to make payments to Zuma or other politicians. "Even if the payments could properly be regarded as loans, they amounted to 'benefits'," it said. No effort to recover payments The State said some of the payments, described and treated in certain Nkobi groups as loans, was inconsistent. "The final accounting treatment of R1 137 722.48 of the total payments of R4 072 499.85 does not reflect the payments as loans," it said. The State added that the scheduled payments were intended by Shaik, the Nkobi group and Thales as bribes. "The funds were paid without security. This is not a usual commercial practice with banks, more especially in respect of a customer with accused one's risk profile. "Despite Nkobi's precarious position with the banks, Shaik and Nkobi made no effort to recover any of the payments from accused one. "This failure to demand repayments is itself a benefit to accused one." 'Service provider agreement' The State also alleges that during 1998, Zuma intervened and assisted Shaik, the Nkobi group and Thales to resolve a dispute that had arisen regarding Nkobi's participation with Shaik in the acquisition of African Defence System (ADS). The former president's assistance relating to the arms deal was informal and it did not form part of the official bidding/selection process, said the State. The indictment further alleges that in 1999 and 2000, Thales and Shaik conspired with Zuma to pay him an amount of R500 000 per annum as a bribe in exchange for his protection in investigations into the arms deal. "These annual payments were to continue until the first payment of dividends by ADS." The State further alleges that it was agreed between the parties that the "bribes" would not be paid directly to Zuma, "but that some method of payment would be employed that was calculated to disguise the true nature of the payments so as to avoid detection". The indictment says during late 2000 to early 2001, Kobifin (Pty) Ltd entered into a so-called "service provider agreement" with Thales in Mauritius as a device to "conceal or disguise the true nature and source of the payments of the bribe". Source: News24
  20. Owned by Iqbal Survé, the company hopes to attract a minimum of R3bn in its initial public offering on Friday, despite its accumulated losses Sagarmatha Technologies — the company which has a deadline of Wednesday to attract a minimum R3bn support to proceed with its initial public offering (IPO) on Friday — made a R40m loss on R281.6m revenue for the year to end-December. Sagarmatha issued results reviewed by auditors BDO Cape Town via Sens on Tuesday, showing the company had a net asset value of 33.92c at December 31 — less than a 100th of the R39.62 a share IPO price its proprietor Iqbal Survé is pitching the new listing at. Survé hopes to sell 15.6% of Sagarmatha at R39.62 a share to raise R7.5bn, which would give the company an overall market capitalisation of R48bn. Prior to the listing, Survé owned 90% of the company via his family trust and subsidiaries of Sekunjalo Investment. If the IPO manages to sell 15.6% of the shares at the asking price, Survé would own about 76% of the remaining shares valued at R36.5bn. The results released on Tuesday showed Sagarmatha has an accumulated loss of R250m. Its cash flow statement showed its cash reduced by R42.5m to R254m at the end of 2017. Source: BusinessLive
  21. South Africa, we have a problem. There is a move afoot in the country that is potentially far more dangerous than the Gupta’s attempted takeover of the country, and that is media manipulation and unethical reporting designed to prevent broader economic participation. The most important point we would like to make here is that we, as Independent Media and Sagarmatha Technologies Limited, have nothing to hide. We have been consistently transparent. What worries most of our media competitors – our main detractors - is that we have identified the future of media and have constructed a Multi-Sided-Platform (MSP) that will make traditional media houses, obsolete. They are fighting for their existence. Before we address the blatant untruths in the recent amaBhungane so-called ‘exposé’ that attempted to question the pre-listing statement of the company due to list on the JSE, let us discuss journalist ethics in this country. How is it that journalists now feel they have the right to undermine a listing of a competitor, by approaching international investors and interrogating the intelligence of their investing in Sagarmatha, a process that can only be described as an attempt to determine the outcome for their own favour? Or, journalists contacting assets managers in South Africa and international valuation houses, to sway them with their uninformed rhetoric – again for their own advantage? This is a dangerous move – not only for these journalists and the publications they represent but for the country as a whole. This is in effect, tantamount to dissuading international investment from entering South Africa, at a time when the country is actively pursuing capital injections to counter the years of negative growth. Media has the inalienable right to contact whomever they wish, of course, to understand the business/story they are working on and to get comment. But, to actively seek to sabotage the deal because of a personal grudge or because their own businesses stand on the edge of extinction, is in our mind, highly unethical. An untransformed media landscape still exists in this country, so there is a lot riding on Sagarmatha’s listing. It will change the face of media in South Africa and the continent, forever. So, let us put the facts out there: Sam Sole is not a financial journalist. That is evident in the factual inaccuracies contained in the so-called ‘analysis’ piece published this past weekend. He has condensed a 212-page document into essentially five steps. This leaves a lot open to interpretation and misrepresentation. Secondly, it is hardly an investigation, given that the information is in the public domain and that we were never once contacted for our comment or insight or to check the facts of this article. Why not we wonder? The article focuses on Independent Media – it does not set the landscape for the reader to understand the bigger picture. Independent Media makes up less than 5% of the Sagarmatha Technologies value proposition. The investment into Independent Media is a private equity transaction, this is what Sam Sole has missed completely. Like all deals of this nature, anywhere in the world, value is built over time. Eventually, the value creation is greater than the cost of capital. The debt – Independent Media is actually ahead of its scheduled repayments to the PIC/GEPF, having already made a sizeable capital repayment early in the investment phase. It has also serviced interest payments to its other minority shareholder, Interacom, amounting to over R380 million. But, as a private company, it is not bound to publically disclose its financials. The Listing and Sagarmatha Technologies’ subsequent acquisition of Independent Media, changes this. Although there was no requirement to pay the 50% of the loan until September 2018, Sekunjalo and Independent Media have accelerated repayments. Another myth the Daily Maverick and others have been peddling over the past few years, is that the PIC loaned more than R2 billion to Independent Media. This is a gross misrepresentation of the facts, which are: the PIC originally had a combined investment and loan of R1 Billion, of which R150m was repaid early on, which is far less than its transactions with the likes of Tiso Blackstar (formally Times Media Group), Caxton, CTP and even Naspers. If an investment into a company whose share price had plummeted to the extent that Tiso Blackstar now finds itself facing, surely that would result in the dismissal or at the very least, critical examination of the leadership? Independent Media carries no bank loans. All of its debt is to shareholders who have a vested interest in the long-term success of the business. Mr Sole conveniently ignores the fact that many media houses in South Africa share the same investor grouping too – in that vein then, these other media houses should also be tarred with the same brush of misusing pensioners funds, surely? Sekunjalo has put up all the money to modernise what was essentially a legacy media house when it took over Independent Media. Through the money that Sekunjalo has injected into Independent Media, the company has paid for its own printing presses in KZN and Gauteng for example. This gives Independent Media control over its own production processes – not reliant on third parties. This is the value that has been added by Sekunjalo after the previous owners disbanded the printing operations in Johannesburg. Independent Media has in fact now grown in value due to what Sekunjalo has put into growing the technology platforms that underpin Sagarmatha Technologies. Sekunjalo has funded these improvements for the benefit of all the investors and shareholders and, for the employees who work within these structures. The reality is that Independent Media has benefitted at no cost to anyone else other than Sekunjalo who has solely invested in the modernisation of the business. It has moved from a legacy print business to an advanced content technology business that consistently wins global awards for its innovation. The other reality is that all media houses are battling with declining revenues. That’s not a secret either. The difference here is that Independent Media has jumped on the super-galactic highway and has managed to re-engineer itself to take advantage of technology and the fourth industrial revolution. Should that not be lauded? Flow to the family – Once again, everything is fully disclosed in the PLS – a public document written with investors in mind, and something that therefore talks in a language that the financial community inherently understands. But, let’s take one point as an example. The interpretation by amaBhungane seeks to paint the Survé family as self-serving when it allegedly sells itself shares at a discounted rate and makes poor old Independent Media pay a lot more. The truth of the matter is that this issue of shares to Independent Media was due to an internal restructure in preparation for a future listing as fully disclosed in the pre-listing statement. Far from the Survé family benefitting, the outcome is that Independent Media, without any payment, now owns 40,000,000 shares in Sagarmatha Technologies which, are worth R1.575 billion post listing, as per the Redwood valuation, which by any account, is a very good return for an “insolvent” Independent Media. If the journalist in question or his contacts, understood financial reporting they would have identified that the “treasury shares” referenced in the PLS, are in fact owned by Independent Media and on a standalone basis “not consolidated basis” - Independent Media is very much solvent. That is the value created by Sekunjalo. Valuation – South Africa’s economy has been built on mining – it’s physical and tangible. This is a legacy of it being a closed economy through the apartheid years. Old habits die hard it would appear, as this narrow-minded approach and recalcitrance to understanding platform businesses and new paradigms, is hampering our ability as a country to go where other developed and emerging markets are already playing. Much of our financial and media sectors are operating in a comfort zone that will ultimately punish us as Africans if we do not adjust our thinking in line with what is currently happening across the continent and in the rest of the world. The world has moved on from brick and mortar businesses, do we wait for Western or Asian companies to lead the way in Africa, or do we as Africans make the first step? Let’s transform our minds, we must control our own destiny. The media’s questioning the integrity of one of the world’s most respected valuation firms that has performed countless valuations conforming with US Securities and Exchange (SEC) filings, and, which was put through stringent JSE review, along with the requirements set down by the JSE, doesn’t do much to build trust in South Africa. All of this could have been so easily explained, had anyone bothered to have picked up the phone or sent an email. Independent Media and Sagarmatha Technologies are more than willing to address questions pertinent to the listing from the information that is contained in the PLS. It may not, however, discuss anything not contained in this document, because of a closed period – the same rules that apply to any other company in this position. To reiterate, Mr Sole did not have the decency to offer Independent Media or Sagarmatha Technologies the opportunity to respond. In the world of fake news, the most basic requirement for journalism to survive is to fact check. Not having done so, and only selecting certain components that have been left open to misinterpretation, is a travesty of reporting. So, what is Mr Sole and the Daily Maverick’s agenda?
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