Johann Rupert’s Reinet lost R1.44 billion in four months

Johann Rupert-owned Reinet Fund reported today that its net asset value (NAV) as of 30 June was €5.65 billion (R112.91 billion) – a significant decrease from March this year.

Reinet Fund is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Reinet Investments, chaired by billionaire businessman Johann Rupert. 

In a trading update this morning, the fund reported a decrease in its NAV of €72 million (R1.44 billion) between 31 March and  30 June.

“The NAV reflects Reinet Fund’s shareholding in Pension Insurance Corporation Group Limited, British American Tobacco, its other investments and cash resources, together with other assets and liabilities,” the company said.

Reinet Investments recently released its annual report for the year ended 31 March 2023. The company also reported a significant decline in its NAV, which shrunk by €170 million (R3.51 billion) in the reporting period.

The company attributed this drop to the decrease in value of “certain underlying investments; in particular, the decrease in the share price of British American Tobacco (BAT) over the year and the weakening of sterling against the euro”. 

However, this loss was offset by dividend income from BAT, which amounted to €122 million (R2.52 billion).

Reinet is not the only Rupert-owned company that lost the businessman money this year, as his luxury goods company Richemont recently saw its share price plummet by 9.5% in a day.

This share price decline shaved around R160 billion off the company’s market cap. With a shareholding of 10.18% in Richemont, chairman Johann Rupert lost around R16.3 billion of his net wealth on the day.

According to Forbes, Rupert owns 26% of Reinet.