Software giant SAP has denied reports it is backing away from increasing its black economic empowerment (BEE) shareholding.
This morning, SAP SA MD Claas Kuehnemann said an article in Business Report that SAP was reconsidering increasing its BEE shareholding from 10.5% was "not correct".
According to Kuehnemann, SAP SA has put forward to its international board all the available BEE options under the current legislation.
"This includes BEE equity, equity equivalent, as well as all the other options," said Kuehnemann. "It would be inappropriate for SAP SA to pre-empt the deliberations of the board, as an internationally listed company, on whether it prefers any one option above another."
SAP's BEE partner, Blitec, is the investment arm of the Black IT Forum and, after a SAP restructuring last year, owns an effective 10.5% of the company.
Blitec board chairman Lufuno Nevhutalu said the company is not yet in formal talks with SAP SA to increase its shareholding. "SAP is a very good investment and as business people we would obviously like to increase our investment in the company."
However, he stressed that the restructuring process has only just been completed and no talks have taken place yet.
According to Nevhutalu, he has not received any indications from SAP that it is to backtrack on its BEE strategy, namely to increase black shareholding. "This is the first I've heard of it," he said. "They have never indicated this to us at all."
At the time of announcing the restructuring deal, Kuehnemann said the company was hoping to increase this BEE percentage, but SAP's board is yet to decide on the way forward.
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