- Metrofile Holdings is dealing with margin pressure, as the mix shifts from paper storage to digital
- Lesaka Technologies acquired Connect but the group is still making significant losses
- The ex-CEO of The Foschini Group sold shares in the company worth R28 million
- In Episode 92 of Magic Markets, Craig Antonie of AnBro Capital Investments joined us to walk through the investment case of Patria, an alternative asset manager seen as the "Blackstone of LatAm"
Virgin Active wishes that Europe had more energy
And not just for gym, either. Consumers in Europe are under huge pres sure, with escalating energy costs putting discretionary spending at risk. In an operational update, Brait noted that Virgin Active's European business is seeing the impact of higher living costs for consumers and operating costs for the gyms themselves.
In South Africa, Eskom helps us save money on electricity for several hours each day, thus we appear to have enough money (and motivation) to go to gym. This is mainly true for gyms in residential areas though, not inner-city clubs that are seeing a major drop in usage. Hybrid working is clearly still alive and well.
Two lessons in M&A
- When you are worried about litigation, you can buy the business (the assets and liabilities) rather than the legal entity. DRA Global just sold the business of G&S to KAEFER Integrated Services and the litigation has stayed behind, so DRA needs to sort that out. When you buy shares in a company, remember that you are exposed to any skeletons in the closet. T his isn't the case if you buy specified assets and liabilities.
- Deals are expensive - Lesaka Technologies spent R65.9 million in fees for the acquisition of Connect
For all these updates and so much more, read Ghost Bites this morning. If it's good enough for South Africa's leading fund managers, it's good enough for you.
TreasuryONE has a daily podcast
Keen to get a daily update on the market? TreasuryONE has launched a daily podcast, presented by Andre Botha. You can add it to your list on Spotify or Google Podcasts for now, with more to come.
The rand had a risk-on start to the week, driven by improved sentiment around Europe as positive news came out of Ukraine. The rand got as far as R17.05 to the US dollar before ending the local session at around R17.10. In further proof that your favourite ghost will never understand the gold price, it benefitted from a risk-on trade and closed higher.
With US CPI due later today, the party for emerging markets currencies could come to an abrupt end. The forecast is for CPI to have slowed down to 8.1% and core inflation to come in at 6.1%. If the number prints higher, the Fed's hand will be forced in steeper hikes going forward, which would support the US dollar. If it prints lower, the current sent iment could hold.
Have a terrific Tuesday!
