Once empowered, always empowered
The rumours of the codes coming out soon are rife. This morning's Business Day has dropped a few hints - New rules let BEE investors cash in stakes. The article speaks of the next few weeks. I'm still inclined to believe that codes 100 and 200 will come out in the next few weeks and the balance in time for Christmas.
The new codes will introduce the concept of "Once empowered, always empowered". In other words companies can maintain their empowerment points even after the black investors have sold their stake. I wonder whether the word SOLD is significant, there are many BEE deals that have failed outright at a cost to both the seller and the buyer. I am hoping that they will use the principle that the ICT Charter introduced in its last draft - namely "if the ownership status of a company changes due to no fault of its own, that a company may retain its ownership status for 18 months after the change" (my paraphrasing).
Now I'm happy - locking in an investor or limiting their market when it comes to selling shares does not resonate well with capitalists. An investor should be allowed to buy and sell whenever the time is right, that's how wealth is accumulated. Good move indeed, I am sure that the pace of M&A activity will increase substantially.
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