Company news in brief

Markus Jooste loses appeal

Former Steinhoff CEO Markus Jooste has lost his reconsideration appeal against a R20 million penalty imposed on him for insider trading, with the Financial Services Tribunal describing his actions as "deliberate, premeditated and calculated."

According to last week’s Tribunal ruling, Jooste will also have to pay interest on the R20 million penalty.

Retired Judge Louis Harms, who chaired the Financial Services Tribunal panel that heard the matter, said the reduced R20 million administrative penalty imposed on Jooste by the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA), was appropriate and within the range of penalties it would have imposed.

"Mr Jooste was not only the CEO of Steinhoff, a multinational company, but he was also Steinhoff. He knew Steinhoff and the rights and wrongs within the company," the Tribunal panel wrote in its ruling that was delivered on Thursday.

Jooste, the alleged mastermind behind the accounting scandal that almost sank Steinhoff, was initially slapped with a R162 million penalty by the FSCA in October 2020 for insider trading. He was found guilty of sending an SMS to his friends, warning them to get rid of their Steinhoff shares immediately.

In December 2022, the Tribunal reduced the penalty to R20 million, ruling that Jooste did not disclose "precise" inside information to his friends. – Fin24



China's Evergrande suspends trading

Heavily indebted property giant China Evergrande said its boss was suspected of "illegal crimes", after trading of its shares was suspended on Thursday.

The company announcement to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange comes a day after media reports that Xu Jiayin was being held by police.

No specific reason was given for the decision to suspend share trading, which also affected the company's property services and electric vehicle units.

But late Thursday, the company said it had "received notification from relevant authorities" that Xu "has been subject to mandatory measures in accordance with the law due to suspicion of illegal crimes", without giving further details.

The firm has become the poster child for China's growing property-sector crisis that has seen several high-profile firms engulfed in a sea of debt, fuelling fears about the country's wider economy and a possible spillover globally.

It is just a month since the firm resumed trading following a 17-month halt caused by its failure to publish its financial results.

Evergrande estimated it had debts of US$328 billion at the end of June. – Fin24/AFP



Transnet CEO calls it quits

Transnet CEO Portia Derby has resigned. Her resignation follows a year of lobbying by business and, more recently, organised labour, as the performance of the state logistics company plummeted under her watch.

Michelle Phillips, head of Transnet Pipelines and the longest serving executive who remains at Transnet, has been appointed acting CEO.

The board of Transnet was due to issue a report on Friday on the performance of Derby, after public enterprises minister Pravin Gordhan directed them to assess her suitability for the post.

Rail export volumes have fallen from a high of 213 million tons in 2018/2019 to 149 million tons in the last financial year.

While Transnet has experienced a number of shocks that have been outside of its control, including the pandemic, rising crime, flood damage, and a cyberattack, there has also been evidence of shocking management failure.

A lack of basic controls and outdated systems contributed to the company achieving only 25% of its targets in the past financial year. – Fin24