Investec Asset Management made the first symbolic step of its intention to leave the group that has been its home for the past 28 years when it revealed the name it will adopt once its demerger from Investec is complete early in 2020.
The global asset manager, which intends to list on the London Stock Exchange, announced on Tuesday it will rename itself Ninety One following its separation from Investec.
The name represents the year the business was started.
“Back in 1991 when we started in SA change was coming. Along with its challenges came the chance to invest in a better future. Being part of that change made us who we are. It taught us to be bold, resilient and agile; to believe that active investing can be a force for good,” says co-founder and CEO Hendrik du Toit.
Du Toit told Business Day in 2018 that one of the driving reasons for the separation was the “complex” and “cumbersome” dual-listed structure of the wider Investec Group.
Analysts have said Investec Asset Management’s consistent growth in earnings and cash flow was not being reflected in the group’s share price, removing an important pillar with which Du Toit and his established leadership team could attract and retain talent.
In 2013 Investec attempted to placate the division by selling a 15% stake in IAM to its management team in a deal worth R2.5bn.
Du Toit was famously hired by Investec co-founders Stephen Koseff and Bernard Kantor after a sharp disagreement with the duo on the valuation of a company. He would go on to start what became Investec Asset Management, which today oversees investments worth £118.9bn (R2.26 trillion).
Investec announced the demerger in 2018, and will shortly approach shareholders for approval now that its asset management division has received all regulatory approvals.
The group says the demerger is on track to take place in the first quarter of 2020.
The group will present interim results for the six months ending September on November 21.
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