COMPETITION COMMISSION
Distell’s restructuring set to take even more time
A sluggish share price performance reflects frustration over stymied growth strategy
The long, protracted rearrangement of Distell’s control structure looks set to be further drawn out as the Competition Commission says approval for the latest changes is conditional on the Public Investment Corporation (PIC) selling 20% of the 26.8% it acquired in 2016 to a black economic empowerment (BEE) investor. Chris Logan of Opportune Investments hit out at the commission and described it as "overzealous" in its efforts to enforce conditions. "As a shareholder in Distell I feel the commission is becoming a hindrance in that too much red tape is being attached to this Distell deal, which its far larger competitors AB InBev, Diageo, Heineken and Pernod are not faced with," said Logan. A sluggish share price performance over the past 12 months indicates the investment community continues to be frustrated with Distell’s stymied growth strategy. In October 2017, Distell shareholders approved the final clean-up leg of the company’s cumbersome pyramid structure put in place in the 19...
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