Link Market Services (Link), a leading provider of share registry and associated value-added services in Australasia has acquired a 70% equity stake in South Africa’s The Esop Shop, a company that provides expert advisory services on the design and establishment of Employee Share Ownership Plans (ESOPs) and other broad-based empowerment trusts.
The acquisition will revolutionise the employee share ownership market in South Africa by ensuring that Link and The Esop Shop can immediately offer existing and new clients a full-service ESOP offering including advisory, trust secretarial and management, trust education and communication services as well as share administration services and CSDP offering.
“The acquisition represents a significant step in the strategic visions of Link and The Esop Shop,” says Gavin Hartford, CEO of The Esop Shop.
“Providing our clients with every facet of employee and community empowerment services, with one point of contact, has always been our priority. This acquisition will enable our customers to invest in their people in a transparent and measurable way, which ultimately will help grow revenue and profit.”
The Esop Shop’s sole focus is developing solutions for corporate clients to comply with B-BBEE initiatives in a way that simultaneously aligns their strategic business objectives with employee ownership and community empowerment priorities.
The acquisition allows The Esop Shop’s customers to make smarter and more cohesive business decisions giving them clear line of sight into the management, performance and measurement of B-BBEE initiatives.
Makgane Thobejane, chairman of Nehawu Investment Holdings which holds 30% equity in The Esop Shop add, “We understand the importance of organised labour in the success of a business and design ESOPs accordingly which align employee interests (wealth distribution) to company profits. In line with
“The Esop Shop’s strategy of focusing on its core competencies, we were looking for a specialised partner that will continue to offer The Esop Shop and its clients high quality share registry and shareholder services. In Link, we have found that specialised partner and a company which will execute the transition sensitively and continue to invest in developing the business.”
As part of the Link Group global network, Link Market Services is active in share registry, pension administration and shareholder and member analytics. In share registry, Link Group is active in Australia, New Zealand, India and South Africa with a sister company operating in the United States and Canada.
John McMurtrie, MD and a Board Member of the Link Group says, “This is an exciting transaction for Link as it further broadens our global footprint and increases our exposure to the important South African market. As a leading provider of shareholder services, we are committed to growing this business which aligns to our existing platform. We look forward to working with The Esop Shop and its clients.”
