Investment group VenFin raised R945.2 million from a put option it has used in part to pay for the 1.5% stake in cellular service provider Vodacom from Hosken Consolidated Investments.
VenFin says it exercised the option on 31 December at a strike price of R18.2271.
A put option is a contract that gives the holder the right to sell a specified number of shares of a particular stock at a predetermined price (the "strike price") on or before a certain date.
The holder profits from the contract if the stock`s price drops. If the holder decides to exercise the option (as opposed to selling it), the writer of the shares, in this case Merrill Lynch, must buy the security.
The group acquired the put option from Merrill Lynch last September in respect of about 51.86 million Richemont depositary receipts held by VenFin.
Last year Hosken sold its 5% stake in Vodacom for R1.5 billion, with a 1.5% shareholding going to VenFin and 3.5% going to the UK`s Vodafone.
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