French media giant Canal+ has successfully concluded its mandatory takeover offer for the MultiChoice Group, securing near-total control of the South African pay-TV operator.
The company confirmed on Monday that the completion of the deal will trigger the delisting of MultiChoice from the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE), followed by a significant move: a secondary inward listing of Canal+ itself on the exchange.
This means local investors can now own shares in the company which is now canal+
The outcome marks the culmination of a months-long process that began with Canal+ steadily increasing its stake in the African broadcaster, eventually triggering a mandatory buyout offer under South African law.
Canal+ confirmed the successful closing of its mandatory offer, which was priced at ZAR125.00 per MultiChoice share in cash. Shareholders accepted the offer, raising Canal+’s total holding to approximately 94.39% of MultiChoice’s issued ordinary shares.
Crucially, crossing the 90% acceptance threshold allows Canal+ to invoke Section 124 of the Companies Act, initiating a “squeeze-out” process to compulsorily acquire the remaining shares from minority shareholders at the same offer price.
Once this process is complete, MultiChoice—the parent company of DStv—will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Canal+. The total value of the transaction is reported to be approximately $3 billion.
Maxime Saada, Chief Executive Officer of Canal+, expressed satisfaction with the result: “We are pleased with the overwhelming success of the offer. Following this outcome, we will be moving ahead with a squeeze-out of MultiChoice shareholders and a subsequent secondary inward listing of Canal+ in Johannesburg, in addition to our primary listing [in Europe].”
In July, South Africa’s Competition Tribunal approved the French media conglomerate acquisition of MultiChoice Group, the parent company of DStv and GOtv, in a significant deal valued at approximately $3 billion (around 55 billion rand).
However, This latest move is designed to maintain South African investors’ access to the media sector and the combined entity. By listing on the JSE, Canal+ aims to:
- Preserve Market Liquidity: Allow local investors who held MultiChoice stock to transition their investment into the new combined global media entity.
- Reinforce Commitment: Underscore Canal+’s long-term commitment to South Africa and the broader African creative economy.
The combined group will now serve over 40 million subscribers across nearly 70 countries in Africa, Europe, and Asia, giving the company the scale required to compete directly with global streaming giants like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video.
