IT is not an April Fool’s joke that since Berjaya Corp Bhd (BCorp) hit an intraday high of 50.5 sen on April 1 – its highest level in more than six years – the conglomerate controlled by tycoon Tan Sri Vincent Tan Chee Yioun has been very much in consolidation mode ever since.
The buying frenzy sparked by the entry of former Permodalan Nasional Bhd (PNB) CEO Jalil Rasheed on March 16 began to wane with the market probably pricing in other aspects of BCorp’s business apart from the novelty of its three-year strategic plan to streamline the group vis-à-vis having an outsider to helm a supposed
ly tightly-controlled family entity.
The plan which somehow coincided with Jalil’s 100th day in office was intended to transform the conglomerate back towards profitability.
Recall that the group plans to re-categorise its businesses from seven reporting segments into five key segments comprising retail, food and beverages (F&B), property, hospitality, and services (which will house the group’s gaming unit and financial technology unit).
Among the headline targets are to halve group debt level from RM5.04 bil to around RM2.5 billion in the next three years, partly through the divestment of RM2 bil-RM5 bil worth of assets or businesses in the next two to five years.
At yesterday’s close (Nov 26), BCorp was unchanged at 26 sen with 15.26 million shares traded, thus valuing the company at RM1.41 bil (for the record, BCorp closed at 18 sen prior to the announcement of Jalil’s appointment).
In line with its three-year strategic plan, BCorp announced yesterday (Nov 25) that it has divested its 30% equity interest in Razer Fintech Holdings Pte Ltd to Razer Midas Pte Ltd for US$53.568 mil cash (RM223.89 mil).
Berjaya Fintech Sdn Bhd owned a 49% stake in Razer Fintech with the remaining 51% held by Razer Midas. Following the disposal, BFinTech now holds a 19% stake in the company.
The group has also divested its 70% stake in Berjaya China Motor Sdn Bhd RM13.28 mil cash and disposed of its printing business, Graphic Press Group Sdn Bhd for RM 26.1 mil cash.
“The divestments of BCorp’s interests in Razer Fintech and Berjaya China Motor as well as the closure of Graphic Press is part of the group’s transformation strategy to streamline our operations, divest non-core assets, and focus on higher growth opportunities across our core businesses in order to enhance shareholder value,” commented Jalil in a statement.
“And in the case of Razer, it was especially appealing as we had a significant return on our investment in a relatively short time.” – Nov 26, 2021
