What does it mean when an 86-year JSE name just… disappears?
In this episode of Number of the Day, Francis Herd and Gareth Edwards unpack Barloworld’s delisting after 86 years on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, following a Saudi-led buyout anchored by Zahid Group that takes the 123-year-old company private.
The conversation starts with the basics – what Barloworld is today and why it’s been such a familiar name – then moves into the bigger question behind the headline: what happens to the market when a heavyweight exits the public board?
They explore the “investment signal” argument, the controversy that followed the transaction, and the simple mechanics of why companies list in the first place and why some eventually decide they’d rather go private, even if it leaves the public market thinner.
The number of the day is 86 and it marks the end of a very long chapter on the JSE.
Catch up on all Number of the Day episodes here: https://www.enca.com/number-day-podcast
