Former Harmony Gold CEO plans to
acquire mining assets in Africa for ‘man-in-street’
Bernard Swanepoel’s To The Point Investments has
acquired a controlling stake in Village Main Reef Gold
Mining. He plans to use Village as a vehicle to acquire
assets and give small investors access to juniors in
Africa.
Bernard Swanepoel, former Harmony Gold CEO, plans to use
former gold miner, Village Main Reef Gold Mining Company
(JSE:VIL) as a vehicle for mining acquisitions in Africa
and a means for small private investors to invest in
junior miners on the continent.
Swanepoel, founder and director of To The Point Growth
Specialists Investments, said after the company
announced today it has bought a further 37.8% stake in
Village from Harmony Gold, it was obvious that To The
Point Investments was putting money in Village, a
dormant gold company with a long history, to place more
assets into this cash shell.
He said he has kept himself busy with resources such as
platinum and coal and only a bit of gold since he left
Harmony Gold about a year ago and has learnt that one
could gain access to numerous mining assets on the
continent.
Swanepoel said To The Point's vision was to create a
vehicle that would give the man in the street with as
little as R1,000 ($129) or R10,000 ($1,291) to invest
access to beginning phase projects. It was extremely
difficult for people with small amounts of money to
invest in juniors on the continent and the company would
try to put a package of good mining assets together.
However, it would not be a question of shoving a few
resources into the vehicle; To The Point Investments
would add value through its experience and technical
knowledge of mining.
Swanepoel said To The Point, now the controlling
shareholder of Village, still had to discuss its plans
with other Village shareholders and had to follow-up
today's further acquisition of a 37.8% stake in the
company with an offer to minority shareholders. This was
in terms of the Securities Regulation Code on Takeovers
and Mergers.
The company became the controlling shareholder in the
firm when it announced it increased its shareholding to
47.8% by acquiring the further stake from Harmony Gold
for R1,056,498.55 ($137,087.94) at a price of 46.02
cents (5 US cents) per share.
He said To the Point was happy with owning its current
47.8% of Village or a stake of over 50%. Village
shareholders were typically patient long-term
shareholders that would have to decide whether they
wanted to retain their stakes in the company that would
become a "next generation" resources company.
Swanepoel also set out the strategy in a statement that
said To The Point saw a great opportunity to re-build
Village that was incorporated in 1889 and listed in 1934
to its former glory.
To The Point Investments is a subsidiary of To The Point
Growth Specialists, founded by Swanepoel and Clinton
Halsey and operating mainly in the resources and
resources-related field as advisor and co-investor.
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