MultiChoice, the French media company that now owns CANAL+, has announced that it has been officially listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE).
CANAL+ says the listing not only signals its confidence in the South African market, but also international confidence. It also provides local investors access to global media firms.
“CANAL+ listed on the London Stock Exchange in December 2024 and, using the fast-track framework, today becomes the first French company to list on the JSE, further strengthening the links between the capital markets of South Africa and Europe. As the only global media and entertainment company listed on the JSE, CANAL+ offers investors on the JSE a unique investment opportunity,” the company wrote. a press release.
To get on the JSE so quickly, CANAL+ has used the fast-track framework. This framework allows a company listed on a recognized foreign exchange to make a secondary listing on the JSE. This means that locals can trade shares on the JSE that are fully fungible with shares on the London Stock Exchange.
The company also called on partners including Standard Bank to assist in listing on the JSE.
“We are proud to support CANAL+ on a transaction that reinforces Standard Bank’s position as the leading advisor on complex equity capital markets transactions across Africa,” said Richard Stout, Head of Equity Capital Markets, South Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa at Standard Bank Corporate and Investment Banking.
CANAL+ reportedly relied on Standard Bank's knowledge of the local market, execution expertise and regulatory insight. This is a boon for international investors who want to enter the African market where an outsider's perspective does not always work. It is important to have a local expert to advise an investor and Standard Bank is said to have played a central role in assisting CANAL+.
Of course, the listing also gives the French group a way to raise capital and fund acquisitions in the future.
“We are proud to be the first French company to list in Johannesburg and the only global media and entertainment company to list on the exchange,” Maxime Saada, chief executive officer of CANAL+, said in a statement. “CANAL+ serves more than 40 million subscribers and generates €9bn annual revenues. Africa will be our growth engine for years to come, and we are dedicated to creating value on the continent and sharing it with our African partners, investors and the creative community. By welcoming African investors we deepen our roots, diversify our investor base and lay the foundation for the next phase of our growth.”
you will find CANAL+ on JSE under CNPE code. Standard Bank is listed as the sponsor while Grant Thornton is listed as the audit firm.
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