MTN cannot rule out future deal with Telkom, says CEO
In this article on ITweb, Nicola Mawson discusses consolidation in the telecoms sector, following speculation that MTN could re-attempt to acquire Telkom. MTN CEO Ralph Mupita said a deal with Telkom is not currently on the cards although market consolidation is needed and inevitable over the medium- to longer-term as profit pools are fairly limited in […]
Why SA pension funds aren’t moving on infrastructure
In this thinkpiece in the retirement fund publication IRFA Talk, Mergence Head: Private Equity, Chito Siame, describes the benefits of including infrastructure as an asset class into retirement fund portfolios. He says that trustees are increasing taking infrastructure into account, in the knowledge of the fact that infrastructure can diversify portfolios, hedge against inflation and […]
MTN crash wipes out R30bn as SA struggle and politics bite
Commenting on MTN’s recent results, Mergence Chief Investment Officer Peter Takaendesa said that apart from weaker performance in South Africa, the new leadership had achieved enhanced operational performance and profit with MTN’s rest-of-Africa operations likely to drive stronger growth in the interim. Risks to the group’s investment case include regulatory concerns in Nigeria, US geopolitical […]
JSE listing to test Cell C’s turnaround story
The proposed separate listing of Cell C, South Africa’s fourth-largest mobile operator, on the JSE could mark a pivotal moment for the debt-laden company. Commenting on the development, Mergence CIO Peter Takaendesa said that a listing could benefit Blue Label if the market assigns an attractive valuation to Cell C shares although the telco itself […]
What the smart money is doing
Salome Maruma, Co-Portfolio Manager at Mergence Investment Managers, provides some stock comment in the Financial Mail this week. She indicates her relative preference for two retailers, with a Buy for Shoprite and Sell for Boxer.the two food retailers with a “turnaround” investment thesis.
American Exceptionalism vs Exceptional Valuations
In the latest issue of HedgeNews Africa, Mergence Portfolio Manager Fazila Manjoo looks at the past and potential future of US stocks and the need for diversification. The case for continued US dominance of equity markets relies heavily on the assumption of US exceptionalism. While this idea has been fully embraced by Trump and the […]
SA’s rate cut: a move to boost the economy and property market
On Thursday, the SA Reserve Bank MPC reduced the policy rate by 25 basis points, to 7%. Commenting on the development, Mergence portfolio manager and property investment expert, Unathi Hewana, said that the lower interest rate environment will benefit the local property sector and that any improvement in consumer sentiment, driven by the lower interest […]
The human touch – the real edge in the age of AI
MoneyMarketing writes about AI for financial advisers in their August edition. Adding to the debate and with an investing lens, Siviwe Jeyi, Business Development Analyst at Mergence Investment Managers, says that AI is likely to be adopted as a support tool to enhance, rather than replace, existing fundamental and quantitative approaches. It is likely to […]
Fixing SA’s water problem means curtailing municipalities’ free spending ways
In this timeous article in Moneyweb, Chito Siame, Mergence Head: Private Equity comments on the reforms to be implemented in the water sector, in particular aim to govern the way in which municipalities manage water. Chito discusses public-private partnerships and the success of the Mergence-SA Water Works PPP is highlighted.
Mergence deepens commitment to Solarise Africa
As reported in Africa Global Funds, Mergence Investment Managers has deepened its support for the Commercial and Industrial (C&I) renewable energy sector with a follow-on investment of R60 million in Solarise Africa. Mosa Molebatsi, Head of Private Debt at Mergence Investment Managers, said “We are proud to back a platform that is enabling cleaner, more […]
AI-driven infrastructure demand lifts telco share prices
As artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies fuel growing demand for connectivity and computing capacity, telecoms companies are increasing their infrastructure investment to capture this growth. Peter Takaendesa, chief investment officer at Mergence Investment Managers, says that, taking total returns into account the JSE telecoms index has returned a gain of about 97% compared to […]
