Billionaire Johann Rupert’s investment giant dumps South Africa’s most valuable bank

Billionaire businessman Johann Rupert’s investment vehicle, Remgro, has disposed of nearly 52 million shares in FirstRand.

This marks the continuation of a nearly six-year-long sell-off process, which started in 2020 when Remgro unbundled its strategic interest in the banking giant.

Remgro is one of the Rupert family’s oldest existing companies, formed in the 2000s when the Rupert-founded investment giant Rembrandt restructured into two publicly traded companies.

One of these companies was VenFin, which handled the company’s technology investments, and the second was Remgro, which managed its traditional assets.

In 2009, these companies merged back into Remgro, and the investment giant has continued to grow ever since.

Today, Rupert remains the company’s chairman, and Remgro’s intrinsic net asset value is R292.34 per share as of June 2025.

The company’s interest in FirstRand dates back to 2001, when Remgro exchanged its 8.2% interest in mining giant Billiton (now known as BHP) and its 11.3% interest in Gold Fields for a 9.3% interest in FirstRand and a 23.1% interest in Rand Merchant Bank (RMB).

FirstRand is South Africa’s most valuable JSE-listed banking group, with a market cap of R509 billion. Its portfolio includes well-known companies such as FNB, South Africa’s oldest bank; RMB; WesBank; and Ashburton Investments.

In June 2020, Remgro decided to unbundle its then 28.2% investment in RMB by way of an interim dividend in specie amounting to R23.9 billion.

Following this unbundling, Remgro retained a direct exposure of 3.92% in FirstRand, which it had previously identified as non-core.

By the end of 30 June 2025, Remgro had sold down this residual interest in FirstRand to a holding of 1.64%.

On Wednesday, 11 March, Remgro informed shareholders that this years-long disposal process continued at the start of this year.

Between 2 February 2026 and 10 March 2026, Remgro disposed of 51,966,739 additional FirstRand shares in the market.

These shares were sold at an average price of R93.87 per share, for a total of R4.88 billion.

“The proceeds from the disposal add to Remgro’s strategic cash resources, which are managed in accordance with its capital allocation framework,” the company said.

Why Remgro dumped FirstRand

In Remgro’s 2025 Annual Report, CEO Jannie Durand explained that the company’s disposal of FirstRand forms part of a broader portfolio optimisation strategy.

In 2020, the majority (77%) of Remgro’s portfolio consisted of JSE-listed assets. The company decided that it wanted to establish a portfolio of substantially unique and desirable exposures.

This means its portfolio cannot be replicated, as Remgro’s exposures would be unique and only available through the investment giant.

Therefore, in June 2020, the company embarked on a mission to reposition its portfolio, which included shedding many of its JSE-listed holdings, including RMB and FirstRand.

Remgro’s portfolio restructuring also took place through corporate activities other than disposals.

For example, it listed OUTsurance following the collapse of RMI Holdings, which housed Remgro’s insurance assets, in 2022.

The company also delisted Mediclinic International, in partnership with Mediterranean Shipping Company SA, in June 2023. 

Remgro also merged its interest in South African beverage producer Distell with global brewing giant Heineken, which involved delisting the local company.

Following all of these corporate actions and more, and over five years after Remgro decided to embark on this mission, its portfolio is now considerably more unique, with substantial holdings in private companies.

“We have successfully executed on our strategy to optimise and reposition our portfolio and, through embedding these transformative actions, laid the foundation for unlocking sustainable shareholder value,” Durand said in Remgro’s 2025 Annual Report.