Dubai’s Averi targets Johannesburg listing through South African reverse takeover

Dubai-based investment firm Averi Finance is eyeing a Johannesburg listing through a reverse takeover of South African mining firm Mantengu, founder and CEO Gaspar Lino told Bloomberg. If completed, the combined entity could move to the Johannesburg Stock Exchange’s (JSE) main board and undergo a name change.

SOUND SMART- A reverse merger allows a private firm to trade publicly by acquiring a controlling stake in an already-listed company — sidestepping the lengthy, costly process of a traditional IPO.

How it would work: Mantengu would issue 650 mn new shares, which would give Averi control of 66.7% of the enlarged group and leave Mantengu shareholders with the remaining balance. Averi would bring in a portfolio spanning oil and gas, renewables, and digital infrastructure to the combined entity. The implied enterprise value is about USD 179 mn, though talks are still at an early stage and an agreement has yet to close.

A timely pivot for Mantengu: The South African miner has been under pressure, recently starting consultations over potential job cuts at a unit after deciding not to restart silicon carbide production due to high electricity tariffs. Mantengu was hit by a public censure from the JSE in March for non-disclosure violations, shortly after a leadership overhaul in February saw its former CEO step down.

Why Johannesburg, why now? Lino said a listing would give Averi “better access to institutional investors and wider sources of capital” as it scales deeper into Africa. “We considered Mauritius, London, and the US to list, but decided the JSE is the right market for us as we continue our strategy to invest in Africa,” Lino said. Averi is targeting roughly USD 1 bn in revenues over the next three years, he added.

Africa is already central to the wager: Averi says it has invested across 10 African markets over the past decade and completed roughly USD 15 bn in transactions. It also joined the US-led Power Africa initiative alongside Amea Power, backing plans to help facilitate USD 5 bn in generation and power-distribution investments across the continent.

Why the JSE?

The JSE is Africa’s largest and most liquid exchange, with more than 400 listed companies and a market cap of over USD 1 tn. The All Share Index is up roughly 22.5% y-o-y despite being down about 1.1% YTD. It has continued attracting international firms this year, including Canada’s Aimia through a secondary listing and Dublin-based Greencoat Renewables, which shifted to a dual primary JSE listing to deepen access to South African institutional capital.

Averi wouldn’t be the first UAE firm to join the exchange: Dubai-based AI fintech Optasia IPO’d on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange last year, raising USD 375 mn in what was the JSE’s largest fintech IPO yet. The placement also helped it deepen local capital ties, with South Africa’s FirstRand taking a 20.1% stake in the firm ahead of the listing.