Business
Net1 completes sale of remaining stake in DNI for ZAR 860 million and provides COVID-19 update
JOHANNESBURG, South Africa, April 01, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Net 1 UEPS Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq: UEPS, JSE: NT1) (“Net1” or the “Company”) today
About this update from Lesaka Technologies, Inc.
[{"type":"text","content":"JOHANNESBURG, South Africa, April 01, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Net 1 UEPS Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq: UEPS, JSE: NT1) (“Net1” or the “Company”) today announced that it has completed the sale of its 27.5% remaining interest in DN Invest Proprietary Limited (“DNI”), as follows:\n A 24.3% equity stake in DNI was sold to MIC Investment Holdings Proprietary Limited (“MIC”), one of the most highly regarded investment companies in South Africa, for a cash consideration of approximately ZAR 760 million (or $42.7 million at an exchange rate of $1/ZAR 17.80 at March 31, 2020); andThe remaining 3.2% equity stake was sold to DNI through a share buyback mechanism on deferred payment terms for approximately R100 million (or $5.6 million at an exchange rate of $1/ZAR 17.80 at March 31, 2020). The consideration will be received over 24 months, bearing interest at market related rates, with an initial six-month interest and capital repayment holiday. “We are pleased to conclude yet another key milestone of our strategic plan. We look forward to an ongoing strategic partnership with DNI in order to address our common objectives in the distribution of value-added-services across South Africa,” said Herman Kotzé, CEO of Net1. “Our immediate focus is to ensure the safety and wellbeing of our employees, partners and customers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Over the past month, we have realized in excess of $4.60/share in cash from asset sales and therefore remain comfortable with the Group’s liquidity.” COVID-19 UpdatesOur key market in South Africa went into a 21-day nationwide lockdown starting on March 27, 2020. We believe there is limited impact on our Q3 2020 operations, with a modest adverse impact in South Korea in February prior to the closing of our sale of KSNET and the last two weeks of March in South Africa. We expect the lockdown in South Africa to have a more significant impact on our Q4 2020 results, specifically due to the industry-wide waiving of certain fees during this period, the suspension of non-essential financial and other services and the ability to do marketing and acquire new customers during a lockdown. We will provide further updates with our Q3 2020 results in May 2020. About Net1 (www.net1.com) Net1 is a multinational financial technology company with a presence in Africa, Asia and Europe. Net1 leverages its proprietary ...