Bulls to get new black partner?
by Brenden Nel 10 September 2012, 15:21
The Blue Bulls Rugby Union could well become the first South African Rugby province to have a 100% black partner, after Kagiso Holdings made a massive offer to buy out the shares of Blue Bulls Holdings – currently owned by the Marc Group.
The Blue Bulls Company – which is 50% owned by the BBRU and 50% by Blue Bulls Holdings, runs the professional structures at Loftus Versfeld, including the Vodacom Bulls Super Rugby team and Vodacom Blue Bulls Currie Cup team.
Kagiso Group have made a R335-million offer to acquire the shares of Trinergy Brand Connectors Proprietary Limited, the shares of Experiential Marketing Proprietary and EXP Momentum.
Through the deal it would also indirectly acquire 100% of the shares in Blue Bulls Rugby Holdings, and thus 50% stakeholding in the Blue Bulls Company. The Shares, originally sold by the Blue Bulls Rugby Union to the SAIL Group (now Marc Group), for R40-million, have been a lucrative investment and it is clear Kagiso Media are looking to reap a good return on investment from the deal.
With Kagiso Media setting the completion date for the transaction to be January 31 next year, it is understood that the deal has been accepted by the Marc Group and now needs the approval of the Blue Bulls Rugby Union to become a formality.
However, the offer is conditional on the Takeover Regulation Panel granting an exemption certificate and according to Kagiso “and the transaction is subject to, inter alia, the completion of a sale agreement, regulatory approvals, the necessary approvals by the shareholders and the approval by the Bulls Rugby.
While officials from the Marc Group that serve on the Bulls Board of Directors have had to sign confidentiality clauses because Kagiso is a listed entity, Blue Bulls Rugby Union president Louis Nel did tell supersport.com the deal was in its early stages.
“We’ve had informal discussions with our partners at the Marc Group where we were informed of the offer,” Nel told supersport.com, “But we have little information at the moment. We were surprised at it and have requested more information. Any such information will be handed over to our legal department before we respond to it.”
Kagiso is a level two BBEEE company and has a strong employment equity record. It also has a 50% ownership in Mobile Alliance, which has the management contract for the Sharks digital advertising within the Kings Park stadium. Additional brands within its stable include East Coast Radio, Jacaranda FM 94.2, Heart 104.9, Kaya fm, and on the new media side it includes Howzit MSN, Gloo Design Agency, and Acceleration Media. Jacaranda FM are currently one of the Bulls media partners.
