LIVINGSTONE MARUFU
Nedbank shareholders are set to tap into the benefits such as tax incentives when the company lists its Zimbabwe Depository Receipts (ZDR) on the Victoria Falls Stock Exchange (VFEX) next month.
Nedbank is set to list on November 18 2022 and it will be the fifth company to list on foreign currency-denominated bourse after Padenga Holdings, Caledonia Mining Corporation, Seed Co International, and Bindura Nickel Corporation.
VFEX chief executive officer Justin Bgoni told Business Times that the Nedbank listing will be a confidence booster to many companies to join VFEX.
“We are excited about the prospects of the Nedbank ZDRs listing on VFEX. Over the years, most Nedbank shareholders on the Zimbabwe branch register have been unable to realise the true value of their shares.
“An efficient and effective solution has been crafted to ensure Nedbank shareholders on the Zimbabwe branch register can trade their shares, easier and much faster. Resultantly, Nedbank ZDR shareholders will be able to also benefit from the favourable incentives available on VFEX,” Bgoni said.
He said it is proposed to create a mechanism that routes the trades to VFEX instead of the Johannesburg Stock Exchange through a Zimbabwe Depository Receipt framework.
“Shareholders of Nedbank Group Limited (“Nedbank”) on the Zimbabwe branch register (local shareholders) who are interested in trading their equity securities in Zimbabwe may elect, by completing the form of acceptance, to convert their Nedbank shares into Nedbank depository receipts to be issued and listed on the VFEX,” Bgoni said.
In 2018, the managed separation was completed and shareholders of Old Mutual Limited received Nedbank Group Limited shares by means of an unbundling.
Old Mutual Limited further concluded a second unbundling of Nedbank Group Limited shares to its shareholders in October 2021.
Nedbank Group Limited is a financial services group offering wholesale and retail banking services, as well as insurance, asset management and wealth management services.
Through its principal banking subsidiary, Nedbank Limited, the group is one of South Africa’s four largest banks.
Apart from its predominant exposure to the South African market, the business also has subsidiaries in Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, eSwatini (Swaziland) and Zimbabwe.
