Ronnie Price has sold his 25% stake in ERP.com Holdings, with the bulk going to Treacle Venture Partners, which already has a significant investment in the group.
The ERP.com share price rose 2c to 45c on Wednesday after more than 42 million shares representing about a quarter of the group`s issued share capital changed hands.
At 45c a share, the buyers would have paid a total of about R19 million.
The sale triggered talk that Investec and Treacle Venture Partners had divided the shareholding among them.
ERP.com Holdings CEO Peter Forsyth has confirmed that Treacle was one of the buyers, increasing its stake to 34.5%. Treacle partner Rudolf Pretorius, who is also ERP.com`s non-executive chairman, was in a meeting and could not be reached for comment this morning.
Forsyth says he does not have permission to identify the other buyer, although he can say it is a respected financial institution which now owns 10% of the group`s shares.
He says Treacle`s stake is purposely short of the 35% threshold which would constitute a change of control in terms of securities regulations.
Price, who was until recently chairman of IT group MGX, says he can say "with absolute authority" that Investec was not the buyer.
Price says the fact that his entire shareholding was sold does not indicate a change of opinion about ERP.com, and he believes the sale price was cheap.
He had not been considering a sale before being approached by the buyers.
"I have been a shareholder in ERP.com for quite a while, but when the bid came on the line I thought: 'Why not?` These are interesting markets. I love these markets, but sometimes you have to make a decision on how best to get returns."
Forsyth says Price was a loyal shareholder for about a year-and-a-half. "I`m sure he made a profit and I`m delighted for him." In mid-2001 the ERP.com share was trading at around 20c.
Forsyth says the deal is also a sign that there is growing institutional confidence in the group.
ERP.com Holdings moved to the main board of the JSE last year after spending three years on the venture capital sector.
The group`s share was trading at 45c this morning, 1c down from yesterday`s close.
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