New boss Fabricio Bloisi buys stock in bet on Naspers’ future
CEO uses his own money to buy shares worth R83m, signalling confidence in the group
11 August 2024 - 18:01
by Mudiwa Gavaza
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Fabricio Bloisi, the recently appointed CEO of Naspers and Prosus, has spent R83m of his own money buying up shares in the JSE’s largest group.
In a regulatory filing on Thursday, the group disclosed that the Brazilian businessman had bought 127,335 units of Prosus stock at €31.71 a share, which is worth just more than €4m (R82.6m).
The open market transaction has been registered with the Dutch financial markets authority AFM.
A CEO buying shares in their company can be seen as a strong vote of confidence in its future prospects. It can also indicate they believe the stock is undervalued and likely to rise.
Bloisi’s predecessor, Bob van Dijk, did something similar in early 2022 when he bought $10m (about R155m at the time) worth of Prosus shares.
In September 2023, Van Dijk was replaced by Ervin Tu, the group’s chief investment officer, on an interim basis.
Van Dijk had been at the helm of the technology investment group for almost 10 years, having been appointed as Naspers CEO in April 2014, and then Prosus chief when it listed on Amsterdam’s Euronext in 2019.
Tu remains group chief investment officer and has added president of Naspers and Prosus to his title and responsibilities.
Bloisi was previously the CEO of Prosus’ Latin American food delivery business, iFood. He had acquired iFood in 2013 when it was a 20-person start-up, and has since grown it — rapidly and profitably — to become Brazil’s leading food delivery company.
Prosus took full control of iFood for €1.5bn in 2022.
The Naspers stable told investors a few weeks ago Bloisi’s annual salary would be made up of €695,000 (R13.9m). He also had an annual short-term incentive if targets were achieved, as well as a long-term sweetener that would reward value creation in the group as a whole and, specifically, in the e-commerce segment.
These incentives equate to an annual award with average fair value of $13.5m (R253m) a year over four years.
Bloisi is eligible for a super incentive, a potential “moonshot award”, if “truly extraordinary net new value is created in the market capitalisation of the group”. If achieved, this award could be worth as much as $100m in Prosus and Naspers shares, granted in July 2029.
The group recognises that, while in the realm of possibility, the conditions are ambitious. The group’s market capitalisation would have to double to $168bn by June 30 2028, among other things.
Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
New boss Fabricio Bloisi buys stock in bet on Naspers’ future
CEO uses his own money to buy shares worth R83m, signalling confidence in the group
Fabricio Bloisi, the recently appointed CEO of Naspers and Prosus, has spent R83m of his own money buying up shares in the JSE’s largest group.
In a regulatory filing on Thursday, the group disclosed that the Brazilian businessman had bought 127,335 units of Prosus stock at €31.71 a share, which is worth just more than €4m (R82.6m).
The open market transaction has been registered with the Dutch financial markets authority AFM.
A CEO buying shares in their company can be seen as a strong vote of confidence in its future prospects. It can also indicate they believe the stock is undervalued and likely to rise.
Bloisi’s predecessor, Bob van Dijk, did something similar in early 2022 when he bought $10m (about R155m at the time) worth of Prosus shares.
In September 2023, Van Dijk was replaced by Ervin Tu, the group’s chief investment officer, on an interim basis.
Van Dijk had been at the helm of the technology investment group for almost 10 years, having been appointed as Naspers CEO in April 2014, and then Prosus chief when it listed on Amsterdam’s Euronext in 2019.
Naspers and Prosus unscathed in global tech sell-off
Tu remains group chief investment officer and has added president of Naspers and Prosus to his title and responsibilities.
Bloisi was previously the CEO of Prosus’ Latin American food delivery business, iFood. He had acquired iFood in 2013 when it was a 20-person start-up, and has since grown it — rapidly and profitably — to become Brazil’s leading food delivery company.
Prosus took full control of iFood for €1.5bn in 2022.
The Naspers stable told investors a few weeks ago Bloisi’s annual salary would be made up of €695,000 (R13.9m). He also had an annual short-term incentive if targets were achieved, as well as a long-term sweetener that would reward value creation in the group as a whole and, specifically, in the e-commerce segment.
These incentives equate to an annual award with average fair value of $13.5m (R253m) a year over four years.
Bloisi is eligible for a super incentive, a potential “moonshot award”, if “truly extraordinary net new value is created in the market capitalisation of the group”. If achieved, this award could be worth as much as $100m in Prosus and Naspers shares, granted in July 2029.
The group recognises that, while in the realm of possibility, the conditions are ambitious. The group’s market capitalisation would have to double to $168bn by June 30 2028, among other things.
gavazam@businesslive.co.za
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