Canal+ has boosted its shareholding in MultiChoice by a whooping 28 percentage points in less than two weeks, bringing its total ownership to more than 75% of the company.
The recent increase was disclosed in a MultiChoice shareholder announcement after markets closed, noting that Canal+ first reported a 72.46% stake and then acquired an additional 17 million shares, raising its total to 76.52%.
Peter Takaendesa, chief investment officer at Mergence Investment Managers, says that all that is left now for Canal+ is to wrap everything up by mopping up minority shareholders and clear a few remaining admin technicalities.
Competition authorities approved Canal+'s R55 billion deal in July to buy MultiChoice shares from existing investors at R125 each, subject to conditions including maintaining the company's South African headquarters.
On 22 September, Canal+ and MultiChoice said they had met all the competition authorities’ conditions, which included a R30 billion commitment to maintain MultiChoice's headquarters in South Africa, continued funding for local content and live sports, and supporting the country's creative sector.
With the deal now unconditional, both companies announced changes to the MultiChoice board to ensure suitable Canal+ representation while maintaining independence.
As of 19 September, the French company held an effective 48.2% stake in MultiChoice, with its earlier investments tracing back to a 6.5% position in October 2020, which had grown to 45.2% by May last year, based on ITWeb research.
In April, Canal+ said it aimed to buy all the shares that it didn't already own at a substantial premium to the prevailing share price. Its original offer represented a roughly two-thirds premium over early-2024 levels of R75 a share.
MultiChoice stock closed at R125.74 yesterday. Its five-year low was R62.54, reached in November 2023.
As part of the transaction, a new entity called LicenceCo was spun off to hold MultiChoice’s South African broadcasting licence and manage contracts with local subscribers. This structure supports a Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment initiative and allows for focused regulatory compliance.
LicenceCo yesterday said it had appointed former ICASA CEO and MTN executive Willington Ngwepe as its head.
The rest of the group's video entertainment assets will remain within the MultiChoice Group. The DStv operator has been under pressure from financial strain and a shrinking subscriber base.
The company has faced headwinds as its latest results show that it lost 2.8 million linear subscribers over the past two years, and currency devaluation cost it R10.2 billion in revenue.
In MultiChoice's 2025 annual report, it states that “a potential transaction with an African-centric global player such as Canal+, which not only has scale and resources to contribute, but also a demonstrable history of supporting economic development in Africa, would significantly enhance the continued sustainability, growth and success of our business across the continent”.
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