ON THE MONEY
STUART THEOBALD: SAA and Acsa are giant red flags for private investors in SOEs
There is no sucker unwise enough to take a minority stake in return for their capital and expertise
I suppose it is progress that the ANC’s national executive committee now accepts the importance of introducing “equity partners” into underperforming state-owned enterprises (SOEs). The problem is that the idea — giving outside investors minority stakes in return for their capital and expertise — isn’t going to fly. There is no sucker unwise enough to take such a deal, especially given the government’s history of abusing minority shareholders.
We proved it first with the introduction of private shareholders at SAA. Back in 1999 Swissair took a 20% stake, but when it became clear that the government wasn’t going to follow through with full privatisation, the Swiss got out...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.