RMB holdings [JSE:RMH] has announced that it will be distributing its R130bn stake in FirstRand to shareholders as part of a restructuring process.
It owns a 34% stake in FirstRand, the parent company of First National Bank.
In an update to shareholders on Tuesday evening, RMH said the decision follows a review of its investment portfolio. Its board intends to distribute the FirstRand shareholding to RMH shareholders and also sell off its property assets.
The financial services holding company holds a basket of property development assets worth about R3.35 billion as of June 2019. It also has property-related financial obligations of about R2.60bn, and property-related contingent financial obligations of up to R3.10bn.
The share distribution and monetisation of its properties will need to obtain shareholder and regulatory approvals.
RMB did not say on Tuesday why it had chosen to distribute its shareholding in FirstRand, saying a detailed restructuring announcement would be made before the end of the first quarter of 2020.
In a separate announcement on Tuesday evening, investment holding company Remgro said it intends to distribute its stake in RMH, "in full or in part", to shareholders. Johann Rupert is the chairperson of Remgro's broad. Remgro has a 28.2% stake in RMH.