Trustco: A tale of shifty mines
The investment company’s acquisition of NNDC doesn’t yet seem to have paid much dividends
A large part of Namibian investment company Trustco’s recently released annual report is dedicated to its fledgling resources sector. This is understandable, as a chunk of its shareholder equity has been mobilised to buy the diamond mining interests contained in the Northern Namibia Development Company (NNDC). These assets happened to be owned by Trustco CEO and prime mover Quinton van Rooyen, who is set to receive a princely consideration of R3.6bn in a staggered scrip settlement deal. The assets have been punted as a game-changer for Trustco, which is under some strain in terms of cash flows and maintaining a stout balance sheet to fund its operations (which, aside from mining, span banking, insurance and property). Some context before proceeding. The R3.6bn valuation for what is a dormant diamond mining operation with no record of reassuring carat production is many times the combined market value of some of the most promising (and profitable) commodity producers on the JSE, such...
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