mibbz wrote:VituVingiSana wrote:hisah wrote:CDC Group of U.K. in Talks to Buy Stake in I&M Holdings of KenyaQuote:CDC Group Plc is seeking to purchase a 10.68 percent stake in I&M Holdings Ltd. of Kenya through a private share transfer, the lender said.
The U.K.-based development finance institution entered into a conditional agreement Thursday to buy shares held by Deutsche Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft and Proparco, which have 6.25 percent and 4.43 percent respectively, according to a statement in Nairobi-based Daily Nation.
@vvs, one of your holdings is exhibiting foreign movements.
Yes, I am not sure if that's a positive.
DEG & Proparco have been looking to exit. I would have been happier if they had stayed put with CDC coming in with 'new' money or buying shares of the Shah family thus reducing/diluting their stake for purposes of Corporate Governance.
A positive is that CDC will look at I&M's books before the share transfer. This is positive for other shareholders. Post-chase, a new and significant investor will be thorough...
VVS just an observation from the Kenyan market. All these foreign and local institutional shareholders have in the last 18 months looked at books and prospectus before the Imperial Bank Bond and the Chase Bank private placement. Is it an issue with us,Kenyans to be innately mischievous and hide our dirt in a huge closet that cannot be discovered even with scrutiny by all these external parties?
I have been in a situation/deal where I was looking at the books of a firm. The reality is that you are shown what management wants you to see.
We did not invest in the firm as some answers were not forthcoming. The pressure was that all is OK and we were being too "anal" ... BTW, we were glad we didn't invest coz the crap came out later. We watched it crash and burn.
Back to I&M. Apparently, the CDC have been doing their Due Diligence for a while BUT they have to rely on what Management tells them. I think the Chase/Imperial saga worked well for both CDC and other minority shareholders. I feel better that CDC came in afterwards since I expect them to have asked more pointed questions. They did not have to invest in I&M.
Ultimately, if you do not trust management then run away. Period.
I don't trust management of firms that are controlled by GoK, Merali, etc. I have KenRe but I trust the current management. No Uchumi, merali firms, Home Afrika, Olympia, etc.
I stick to very few firms e.g. Unga, Williamson, KenRe, I&M, TPS and KK. They may not do great all the time but I trust the Management will deliver value.
I like Equity as well but I listen to all the chatter I can find as a precaution. Somehow KCB doesn't inspire the same confidence.
I CANNOT PUT MY FINGER ON IT BUT THERE'S SOMETHING THAT DOESN'T SIT RIGHT WITH ME ON KCB.
I trust BBK & SCBK as well but I have not found a compelling reason to invest recently. Not so much Coop Bank - it's like KCB in a way.
I trust Aga Khan firms/management. They may not always do well as a firm (eg TPS) but I trust they are not out to con me.
Greedy when others are fearful. Very fearful when others are greedy - to paraphrase Warren Buffett