General update following the meeting of the board of directors of Phumelela
Phumelela Gaming & Leisure Limited
(Incorporated in the Republic of South Africa)
(Registration number 1997/016610/06)
Share code: PHM ISIN: ZAE000039269
(“Phumelela”)
General update following the meeting of the board of directors of Phumelela on 12 July 2018
The board of directors of Phumelela has engaged in initial conceptual discussions with stakeholders
of thoroughbred horses and breeders and the Thoroughbred Trust (“the Trust”) with regards to the
administration of horseracing in South Africa and tote betting, which if successful could result in a
change in ownership of the administration of horseracing and/or tote betting and /or the restructure
thereof (“Restructure”).
The Restructure is conceptual at this stage, is very complex and will require numerous approvals and
engagement with many industry participants and regulatory bodies.
A further announcement will be made if it becomes likely that agreement can be reached between the
relevant parties, which given the complexity and the number of stakeholders involved, is expected to
be after approximately 3 months.
Johannesburg
18 July 2018
Sponsor and Financial Advisor: Investec Bank Limited
Sly I think that you have misread this completely.
If anything, these guys will want the Racing Trust/RA to buy them out. Where have Phumelela ever done anything for racing that has not benefited their pockets? This will be no different.
My thoughts are that this move is designed to get rid of the loss leading local operations. For years they have been bleating that there is no money in local racing. The whispers are that the Western Cape have already been told that Phumelela want out. Joostes demise has had a significant effect obviously. Watch the move to try keep International racing and all profitable operations and leave the drek to whoever is stupid enough to take it.
I would ask who are the stakeholders they mention, what mandate have they got, and what exactly is the plan. I see no upside for anyone besides those who will try sell off their shares to the Trust/RA to avoid the inevitable collapse that has been coming.
This is no surprise and has been a long time coming.
There have been a few folk who have been warning about the capture and sell-out of local racing for nigh on a decade. These folk have been banned, discredited, ridiculed and even threatened and labelled as the "lunatic fringe" and "bad for racing".
The question now is, who are these stakeholders Phumelela is having discussions with ?
One can assume the RA, the NHA and Kenilworth Racing ?
It would appear that the shareholders such as Jooste and his "good friend" Rian du Plessis want to get out before the bottom falls in. Their plan one would assume is to sell local horseracing to the Trust (and others) to ensure they get their price.
Once this happens, the stakes agreement comes to an end.
If anyone cares about the future of local horseracing, now might be an appropriate time to get involved and bring in the Gambling Board and Government (Regulatory Bodies) to interdict them from getting away with this. There are major issues that need to be addressed first, intellectual right (screening rights), ownership of racetracks, stakes agreements, Trust shareholding which has been reduced from the obligatory 35% to 25%, the purchase of Supabets, the purchase of Kenilworth Racing, Phumelela's conditions of license and much more.
CUSTOMER VALUE CREATION Phumelela is exploring new methods of improving customer experience and ensuring customer satisfaction. The Company intends to improve satisfaction levels through a focus on providing positive outcomes through a highly driven customer-centric performance culture and complete product solutions to meet customers needs. Opportunities exist to improve customer interaction through technology. A national retail manager has been appointed with experience outside of our industry to apply fresh thinking to our technology, store design, and customer experience initiatives. We have embarked upon a strategy to use technology more effectively and as our first initiative, free Wi-Fi is now being offered in all our stores. We are continually developing new betting applications, especially for smartphones.
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