Blackstar to pay down debt with disposal

Africa-focused investment company Blackstar has disposed of a listed services derivative investment, using the proceeds to pay down debt.

The disposal was made via a series of on-market sales for a cash consideration of 152m South African rand, being a premium of 4.7% to its carrying value as reported on August 31st.

Blackstar generated a 2.28 times return on investment in ZAR and 2.04 times return in GBP, which equates to a 16% and 14% internal rate of return (IRR), respectively, over the six-year and four-month holding period.

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"The majority of the disposal proceeds will be applied against the Investec Bank Limited debt facility that was taken out in January 2012. Blackstar will continue to focus its attention on unlocking further value from its current portfolio of investments and is now well positioned to pursue a range of interesting new investment opportunities," the company said.

Meanwhile, Blackstar director Andrew Bonamour said: "The investment was held through a volatile and turbulent period which included the global financial crisis and the Board is pleased that it has been able to generate a good return on this investment for its shareholders during this period."