- WestProp Holdings Limited says it is on track to list soon at the Victoria Falls Stock Exchange (VFEX).
- The IPO offers one million ordinary shares at US$ 10 each and US$ 5.4 million preferential redeemable convertible shares at US$ 5 each.
- “WestProp’s IPO is to raise US$30 million capital to accelerate development of existing projects.
WestProp Holdings Limited, a property development and investment company, is set to list on the Victoria Falls Stock Exchange (VFEX) following the Board of Directors’ announcement of their upcoming offers.
The VFEX -a USD-indexed bourse and also a subsidiary of the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange (ZSE) has been attracting many companies since its formation over two years ago due to several sweeteners, including zero capital gains tax on share disposal and lesser transacting costs. To date, the VFEX has managed to get 9 listings.
The offers include the issuance of up to 5,400,000 convertible redeemable participating preference shares at a price of US$5.00 each, totaling up to US$27,000,000 (“the Preference Share Issue”) and the offer of up to 1,000,000 ordinary shares at a price of US$10.00 each, totaling up to US$10,000,000 (“the Ordinary Share Offer”).
Additionally, the company will introduce 30,000,000 ordinary shares and 6,000,000 convertible redeemable participating preference shares of the Company on the VFEX. The offers are available to qualifying investors both within and outside Zimbabwe.
The Board of Directors passed a resolution approving the offers on February 22, 2023, and the VFEX approved them on March 20, 2023. The WestProp Holdings Limited shares are set to be listed on the Victoria Falls Stock Exchange on Friday, April 28, 2023. This move signifies the company’s transition to a publicly listed company and is expected to attract investors to invest in the company and join them in their journey of a billion bricks.
“We have successfully migrated from being a private company to a publicly listed company on the Victoria Falls Stock Exchange. It is with this in mind that I confirm that WestProp Holdings Ltd is now a public company and encourage members of the public, pension funds and investors to invest by buying shares and take up a stake in the company and join us in our journey of a billion bricks.” said WestProp chief executive officer Kenneth Sharpe in a speech on Monday to celebrate the company’s migration to VFEX.
According to the WestProp IPO listing Prospectus, Ken Sharpe founded WestProp in 2007 and has steered the company over the last fifteen years into a master planner, financier and largest property developer in Zimbabwe. Through his stewardship, Ken has brought to life Pomona City, a 270-hectare mixed-use lifestyle estate that will offer its residents a trusted customer-centric ecosystem to live, work, play & shop. Most prestigious amongst his numerous awards is the Forbes Best of Africa Most Innovative CEO of the Year which Ken was awarded in 2021. He has also been awarded the ZNCC Businessman of the Year Award and numerous others.
According to WestProp Holdings chairperson Michael Louis, all statutory and regulatory approvals to migrate to VFEX have already been done. “WestProp has received approval to list the two categories of its share capital, namely, its ordinary shares and preference shares and shall accordingly be opening an offer for public subscription of these securities from March 27, 2023 to April 21, 2023,” Louis said.
“The biggest advantage to buying preference shares is that the company underwrites a minimum 7.5 per cent return per annum to your investment,” he added.”
The initial public offering, the first on the dollar-denominated bourse since it was established in 2020, will raise funding to finance six projects by WestPro, Pokugara Residential Estate, Millennium Heights, Pomona City, The 1 Mall of Zimbabwe, Millennium Heights Office Park and the Hills Golf Estate, board chairman Michael Louis said on Monday.
“WestProp’s IPO is to raise US$30 million capital to accelerate development of our existing projects that include Pokugara Residential Estate, Millenium Heights, Pomona City, The Mall of Zimbabwe, Millenium Heights Office Park and the Hills Golf Estate,” he said.
Shareholding in WestProp
WestProp Holdings Limited is a subsidiary of Alpha Holdings, which is a property and investment holding company incorporated and domiciled in Mauritius. The Group WestProp Holdings is 73.3 per cent owned by Alpha Holdings Mauritius.
After the private placement of 26.67 per cent of the Company’s ordinary shares (8,000,000 shares) that was concluded in March 2023, the Top 15 shareholders of WestProp as of the Prospectus consists of Alpha Holdings, Stanbic and MMC nominees.
- 500,000,000 authorised ordinary shares made up of 30,000,000 issued and fully paid ordinary shares and 470,000,000 unissued ordinary shares. Pursuant to the proposed listing, the majority shareholders reduced their interest in the Company by selling off, through private placement, 8,000,000 ordinary shares constituting 26.67 per cent of the issued ordinary shares. The majority shareholders shall make a further offer for the sale of 1,000,000 shares constituting 3.33 per cent of the issued ordinary shares for a total value of US$10,000,000 subject to the Ordinary Share Offer to bring their shareholding into compliance with the 70 per cent threshold mandated by the VFEX Listing Rules.
- 100,000,000 authorised convertible redeemable participating preference shares from which 6,000,000 convertible redeemable participating preference shares constituting 600,000 shares that the majority shareholders have already subscribed for at US$5.00 per share for a consideration of US$3,000,000 and 5,400,000 shares that shall be issued to the public for a total consideration of US$27,000,000 subject to the Preference Share Issue.
Chairman of the board, Dr Michael Louis, said the company had received approval to list two categories of share capital namely its ordinary shares and preference shares.
“It is my privilege to formally announce that on March 7, the Registrar of Companies approved West Property Company Pvt Ltd., to become a public company and West Prop Holdings Ltd. was birthed and issued with its certificate of name change,” he said.
