Lesaka to acquire prepaid electricity submetering and payments business Recharger, expanding alternative payments offering
November 19 2024 - 4:05PM
Lesaka Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq: LSAK; JSE: LSK) (“Lesaka” or the
“Company”) today announced that it has signed a definitive
agreement to acquire 100% of the issued and outstanding ordinary
shares of Recharger (Pty) Ltd (“Recharger”), a South African
prepaid electricity submetering and payments business.
The purchase consideration of ZAR 507 million
($28 million translated at the average exchange rate of $1: ZAR
18.06 as of November 18, 2024) will be paid over two tranches with
the first tranche settled at closing and the second tranche a year
later. The purchase consideration will be settled through a
combination of ZAR 332 million ($18 million) in cash and ZAR 175
million ($10 million) in shares of Lesaka common stock. The share
price applied to determine the number of shares of Lesaka’s common
stock to be issued for the equity consideration will be based on
the volume-weighted average price of Lesaka shares for the
three-month period prior to the disbursal of each tranche. Lesaka
will also make a ZAR 43 million ($2 million) contribution to
Recharger at closing which will be used exclusively to repay a loan
due by Recharger to the seller.
The Company expects the transaction to be
concluded at an EV/EBITDA multiple of approximately 6.0 times.
Recharger is expected to sit within the
Enterprise pillar of Lesaka’s Merchant Division. The Company
expects the acquisition to act as an entry point into the South
African private utilities space while augmenting the Enterprise
pillar’s alternative payment offering.
The transaction is expected to close in Lesaka’s
third quarter of fiscal 2025 and is subject to regulatory approvals
and satisfaction of customary closing conditions.
About Recharger
(www.recharger.co.za)
Recharger is a South African prepaid electricity
submetering and payments business with a base of over 460,000
registered prepaid electricity meters.
Recharger enables landlords to collect payment
for utilities usage from tenants in advance, eliminating the need
to manage billing and collections. This model further provides
tenants with the ability to manage their utility usage and payments
directly, providing them with greater control over cost.
About Lesaka
(www.lesakatech.com)
Lesaka Technologies, (Lesaka™) is a South
African Fintech company driven by a purpose to provide financial
services and software to Southern Africa’s underserviced consumers
(B2C) and merchants (B2B), improving people’s lives and increasing
financial inclusion in the markets in which we operate. We offer a
wide range of integrated payment solutions including transactional
accounts (banking), lending, insurance, payouts, cash management
solutions, card acceptance, supplier payments, software services
and bill payments. By providing a full-service fintech platform in
our connected ecosystem, we facilitate the digitization of commerce
in our markets.
Lesaka has a primary listing on NASDAQ
(NasdaqGS: LSAK) and a secondary listing on the Johannesburg Stock
Exchange (JSE: LSK). Visit www.lesakatech.com for additional
information about Lesaka Technologies (Lesaka ™).
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains certain statements
that may be considered forward-looking statements within the
meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended,
and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended,
and such statements are subject to the safe harbor created by those
sections and the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995,
as amended. Such statements may be identified by their use of terms
or phrases such as “expects,” “estimates,” “projects,” “believes,”
“anticipates,” “plans,” “could,” “would,” “may,” “will,” “intends,”
“outlook,” “focus,” “seek,” “potential,” “mission,” “continue,”
“goal,” “target,” “objective,” derivations thereof, and similar
terms and phrases. Forward-looking statements are based upon the
current beliefs and expectations of our management and are
inherently subject to risks and uncertainties, some of which cannot
be predicted or quantified, which could cause future events and
actual results to differ materially from those set forth in,
contemplated by, or underlying the forward-looking statements. In
this press release, statements relating to future financial results
and future financing and business opportunities are forward-looking
statements. Additional information concerning factors that could
cause actual events or results to differ materially from those in
any forward-looking statement is contained in our Form 10-K for the
fiscal year ended June 30, 2024, as filed with the SEC, as well as
other documents we have filed or will file with the SEC. With
respect to our proposed acquisition of Recharger, additional
factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from
those indicated or implied by the forward-looking statements
include, among others: (1) the occurrence of any event, change or
other circumstances that could give rise to the termination of the
purchase agreement relating to the proposed acquisition; (2) the
ability to satisfy all conditions to completion of the proposed
acquisition, including obtaining regulatory approvals; (3)
unexpected costs, charges or expenses resulting from the
transaction; (4) the disruption of management’s attention from our
ongoing business operations due to the proposed acquisition; (5)
changes in the financial condition of the markets that Recharger
serves; (6) risks associated with Recharger’s product and service
offerings or its results of operation, lower than expected growth
in Recharger’s meters deployed and transactions affected through
its meter base; (7) the challenges, risks and costs involved with
integrating the operations of Recharger with ours; and (8) our
ability to realize the anticipated benefits of the proposed
acquisition. We assume no obligation to update the information in
this press release, to revise any forward-looking statements or to
update the reasons actual results could differ materially from
those anticipated in forward-looking statements.
Investor Relations and Media Relations
Contacts:Phillipe WelthagenEmail:
phillipe.welthagen@lesakatech.comMobile: +27 84 512 5393
Media Relations Contact:Ian HarrisonEmail:
Ian@thenielsennetwork.com
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