BizNews Radio

Protea Capital Management founder Jean-Pierre Verster shares his insight on the US stock market, with specific focus on the tech titans. The turbulent market has turned Mr. Market into a maniac, with some of the world’s largest businesses - Netflix, Facebook and Amazon - all subject to near 20% intraday moves following earnings announcements. Jean-Pierre also takes a deep dive into the valuations of these businesses and whether the current sell-off has provided some decent entry points in good businesses.

The much-awaited second tranche of findings coming out of the State Capture Inquiry is blunt about the extent to which Transnet was sucked dry to the tune of at least R41.2bn by the Guptas and their cronies. I’ve been combing through this latest report so that you don’t have to. I hope this provides you with a digestible snapshot of the feeding frenzy that went on at the entity with the taxpayers' money, and who, the reports says, we should be pointing fingers at.

Since David Hurwitz took over as CEO in 2014, Transaction Capital's share price has delivered compound annual growth of 24.2% for shareholders. Even more if you include the healthy dividend stream. This in-depth podcast with BizNews editor Alec Hogg seeks the secret sauce driving one of SA's top performing companies. Conclusion: a Warren Buffett-type structure with power devolved to empowered entrepreneurs in operating units; disciplined capital allocation from a small team of executives at the centre; a massive investment in and understanding of Big Data; and, critically, focus on "stigmatised" sectors of SA's economy - debt collections, minibus taxis and second hand cars. An masterclass in how to structure and run a successful enterprise in the information economy.

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In this episode of the BizNews Power Hour, the Financial Times has the latest on the Joe Rogan/Spotify saga, with the music streaming platform's stock plunging in after-hours trading; Ranmore Fund Management founder Sean Peche shares his insight on US mega tech stocks Meta and PayPal sliding more than 20%; In-depth interview with one of SA's most successful CEOs David Hurwitz from Transaction Capital.

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News headlines:

*A new report from the University of Stellenbosch claims that schoolchildren in South Africa have lost approximately 1.3 years of schooling since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic – equivalent to losing six and half years of learning progress.

*More civil action groups are joining the battle against South Africa’s state of disaster, with non-profit DearSA joining Afriforum in its court bid to force the government to bring the state of disaster to an end.

*British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has asked the Cabinet Office to look into allegations that Bain & Co. was involved in corruption in SA.

Ranmore Fund Management founder Sean Peche shares his insight on US mega tech stocks Meta (previously Facebook) and PayPal sliding more than 20% following disappointing earnings guidance and lower-than-expected growth forecasts. Peche believes the sell-off is a culmination of several macro- and micro-economic headwinds all coming together at once. Earnings season in the world’s largest economy has seen mixed results, with the likes of Apple and Alphabet outperforming while a number of the pandemic winners have seen big growth reversions and re-ratings by Mr Market. Amazon announced earnings after the bell in New York today and with the market at a tipping point, these results could sway sentiment in the weeks to come

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Corion Capital’s chief investment officer, David Bacher, focuses on the paradigm shift taking place in markets, the rotation from growth to value. Valuations have started to matter and many of the pandemic winners – stocks that have attractive stories but not necessarily attractive financials – have begun to suffer. Bacher is quietly optimistic about South African equities and bonds, given the lofty valuations and inflationary concerns in the world’s largest economy. Many of the out-of-favour companies of a year ago are today’s hot picks.

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News headlines:

*The Guptas and their associate Salim Essa used a supplier, VR Laser Services, as a "vehicle" to capture state defence technology company Denel, the State Capture Commission has found.

*Acting chief justice Raymond Zondo says that South Africa’s government has proven incapable of appointing CEOs and other officials to public enterprises and recommends that a board be set up to choose the right people for the job.

*Trade union Solidarity on Wednesday served court papers seeking the annulment of the Covid-19 state of disaster, saying SA needs to return to a functioning democracy.

In this episode of the BizNews Power Hour our partners at the FT bring you up to date on a 20 for 1 stock split by Google's parent company Alphabet; Michael Appel unpacks some of Zondo's second report hot off the press; Linda van Tilburg talks to a BizNews-inspired Mossel Bay resident about his ambitions to fix SA's education system; Shri Pillay from the Eurasia Group ponders the certainty of a December victory for Ramaphosa at the ANC's elective conference.

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Simon Lincoln Reader, known to the BizNews community as SLR, wears many hats. A regular columnist for BizNews, Reader possesses a unique ability to merge perceptive depth and satirical wizardry in his articles. In January, Reader – a London-based technology investor – visited Cape Town, which presented the perfect opportunity for a refreshingly frank, face-to-face conversation. True to form, Reader did not hold back. Not surprisingly, the entire (rather lengthy) podcast – recorded in his garden in Cape Town – is wildly entertaining, with Reader recounting details of experiences ranging from his relation to ‘Iron Lady’ Margaret Thatcher to his involvement with the ANC many years ago. Topics like Joe Biden, Boris Johnson’s hair and wokeness, among many others, were covered and his take was both hilarious and insightful.

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