Johannesburg - The government pension fund will vote in
favour of Absa Group's plan to buy the African operations of its British parent
Barclays, Business Day newspaper reported on Monday.
Absa's minority shareholders, including the Public
Investment Corporation (PIC) pension fund, are due to vote on Monday on the
bank's plan to issue $2bn in stock to Barclays, in exchange for the British
lender's African businesses.
While the deal is dilutive, it also offers Absa exposure,
the PIC told Business Day.
"We will support the deal primarily because this
provides Absa with an immediate exposure to a higher growth trajectory
market," the paper quoted an official for the pension fund as saying.
It did not give the name or title of the official.
The PIC is Absa's largest shareholder after Barclays,
holding a little over 9% of the bank, according to Thomson Reuters data.
Follow Fin24 on Twitter, Facebook, Google+ and Pinterest.