ASSET DISPOSAL
Will PIC go for state’s Telkom shares?
The government sold its 13.9% stake in Vodacom to the PIC in 2015
The Public Investment Corporation (PIC) is keeping mum about whether it is a possible buyer should the government decide to dispose of all or part of its 39.7% stake in Telkom to pay for its R2.2bn bail-out of South African Airways (SAA). Finance Minister Malusi Gigaba has given an undertaking that the bail-out, which was necessary to repay a loan to Standard Chartered Bank that the bank refused to extend, will be budget neutral in the current financial year. This will require the sale of an easily disposable asset — such as the government’s stake in Telkom. A similar strategy was used in 2015, when the government sold its 13.9% stake in Vodacom to the PIC for an undisclosed sum to fund its R23bn allocation to Eskom. Responding to a question as to whether the PIC would be interested in purchasing an additional stake in Telkom, spokesman Sekgoela Sekgoela said: "It would be inappropriate for the PIC to express itself publicly on market-sensitive information likely to impact on the va...
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