South Africa’s wealthiest black individual, and the president of the Confederation of African Football, Patrice Motsepe, is reportedly in discussions to join Canal+’s bid for MultiChoice, as reported by Bloomberg.
The discussions are said to be in the early stages, and there is no assurance of reaching an agreement.
Motsepe, with a net worth of $2.4 billion according to Forbes, serves as the founder and chairman of Ubuntu-Botho Investments and African Rainbow Capital (ARC). These entities have investments in various ventures, including mobile network operator Rain and neobank TymeBank. Additionally, Motsepe has mining interests through Africa Rainbow Minerals (ARM).
Canal+ recently proposed an offer of R125 per share for MultiChoice, a significant increase from the original bid of R105 per share put forth in early February.
The proposed offer values MultiChoice at approximately $2.9 billion. Canal+ has progressively increased its stake in MultiChoice from 20.1% to 35.01% since the initial offer was made in February 2023.
Since Canal+’s expression of interest, experts have highlighted the regulatory complexities associated with acquiring MultiChoice.
Motsepe’s involvement in the negotiations may help address some of these complexities. For instance, one challenge is that foreign companies are restricted from holding more than 20% voting rights in South African broadcasting firms.
“Motsepe’s potential participation would ensure that MultiChoice remains in South Africa and meets the local ownership threshold mandated by authorities,” commented Mpumelelo Ndiweni, CEO of Colmin Group, an African markets advisory and investment firm.
