Prosus N.V. engages in the e-commerce and internet businesses. It operates internet platforms, such as classifieds, payments and fintech, food delivery, travel, education, etail, health, social, and other internet platforms. It has operations in the Americas, Africa, Central and Eastern Europe, and Asia. The company was formerly known as Myriad International Holdings N.V. and changed its name to Prosus N.V. in August 2019. Prosus N.V. is headquartered in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Prosus N.V. is a subsidiary of Naspers Limited.
Prosus NV said its e-commerce business grew revenues and shrank trading losses for the year that ended March 31, even as its overall profit continued to be dominated by its investment in Chinese tech giant Tencent Holdings. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/prosus-full-profit-rises-tencent-063542238.html
The largest shareholder of Chinese tech giant Tencent Holdings, with 28.9% of the company, is Prosus , a European holding company, which itself is majority-owned by South African company Naspers (OTC:NPSNY). Since basically all of Naspers' net worth is tied up in its non-South African investments held by Prosus, they are pretty much the same set of assets, distributed across two different stocks. As many know, both stocks trade at a big discount to the value of Prosus' Tencent stake. However, the Prosus/Naspers complex will be undertaking a large share swap this summer, which management believes will help close the gap, due to the idiosyncrasies of the two exchanges on which both stocks trade. https://www.fool.com/investing/2021...hoo-host&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=article
Prosus N.V. (the "Offeror") (Euronext Amsterdam: PRX; JSE: PRX) announces today an offer to purchase any and all of its outstanding U.S.$1,200,000,000 5.500% Notes due 2025 and its outstanding U.S.$1,000,000,000 4.850% Notes due 2027 (the "Securities"), each issued by the Offeror and guaranteed by Naspers Limited, a company incorporated under the laws of South Africa, for cash (the "Offer"). https://finance.yahoo.com/news/prosus-n-v-announces-cash-083800620.html
Prosus N.V. (Prosus) (Euronext Amsterdam: PRX; JSE: PRX) today announced the results of the Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) of Prosus shareholders, regarding its voluntary share exchange offer. The transaction was approved by the requisite majority of Prosus shareholders at the EGM held today. Excluding Naspers’s votes, the Prosus shareholders voted 53.35% in favour of the transaction. Naspers N shareholders will now receive the opportunity to exchange Naspers ordinary shares for Prosus ordinary shares, in accordance with the terms of the transaction. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/prosus-announces-shareholder-approval-voluntary-151700308.html
Foodtech major Swiggy has closed a $1.25 billion round led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2 and its existing backer Prosus. Accel Partners, Wellington Management, Qatar Investment Authority, Falcon Edge Capital, Amansa Capital, Goldman Sachs, Think Investments and Carmignac also participated in the round. While the company had raised $800 million in April, it has topped the round with another $450 million. This marks SoftBank’s first investment in the Indian foodtech sector. Last week, the Japan-based investor had received approval from the Competition Commission of India to invest in foodtech platform. Swiggy closes $1.25 Bn round led by SoftBank and Prosus (entrackr.com)
In the second episode of the Prosus Group Techaway series, Ashutosh Sharma, Head of Indian Investments at Prosus Ventures, interviewed Sandeep Deshmukh, Co-founder and CEO at ElasticRun. ElasticRun is a Prosus-backed Kirana commerce platform that enables access to ten million rural Indian Kirana shops, where sales are expected to grow to US$600 billion over the next five years. Rural Kirana stores in India remain underserviced by consumer brands due, to both the high-cost structures of traditional distribution networks and the rural Kirana’s long distances from the cities and small order sizes. The ElasticRun platform delivers a range of physical and digital services to help these stores attract more customers. https://www.prosus.com/news/elastic...-its-kirana-commerce-platform-in-rural-india/
Indonesia “sea-to-table” platform Aruna hooks $35M led by Prosus and East Ventures Growth Fund Aruna announced today it has raised $35 million in Series A funding led by Prosus Ventures and East Ventures Growth Fund, with participation from SIG and returning investors including AC Ventures, MDI and Vertex Ventures. Aruna says this is the largest Series A investment to date in Indonesia’s agritech and maritime sector. The company works primarily with small fisheries (or ones that have boats with about one to two metric tonnes of capacity) and focuses on sustainability, helping suppliers adhere to the United Nations Goal 14’s targets. These include preventing overfishing, protecting coastal ecosystems and giving small-scale fisheries access to more resources and markets. Aruna was founded in 2016 by Farid Naufal Aslam, Indraka Fadhlillah and Utari Octavianty, who met while studying information technology administration and management at Telkom University. Fadhlillah and Octavianty came from families in the fishing industry, and the three wanted to create something that would solve some of the challenges they faced. “This was the main idea, but the bigger thing we saw at the time was the advantage of Indonesia’s position as a large agricultural country with big potential in the seafood industry,” Aslam told TechCrunch. Indonesia “sea-to-table” platform Aruna hooks $35M led by Prosus and East Ventures Growth Fund | TechCrunch
JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Technology investor Prosus will pay up to $144 million in transaction fees when it buys a block of parent company Naspers' shares, according to a document submitted to stock exchanges on July 12, prompting criticism from investors. The fees total more than Prosus' free cashflow for the year ended March 31, and are almost three times more than Naspers paid in 2019 to list Prosus on the Amsterdam Stock Exchange. Some 95 million euros ($112 million) of the fees will be to cover securities transfer tax (STT), according to the document, reviewed by Reuters. The rest will be for costs such as fees for bankers, lawyers and accountants. Prosus was spun out of Naspers in 2019 to hold the South African group's international assets, including its 29% stake in Chinese tech giant Tencent. Naspers hoped the move would reduce the discount its shares traded at to the value of its holding in Tencent. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/prosus-faces-investor-criticism-over-122851684.html
Tencent Holdings Ltd. led a stocks rout after Chinese state media decried the “spiritual opium” of games, prompting the company to broach a ban for kids and triggering fears Beijing will set its sights next on the world’s largest gaming arena. China’s most valuable corporation fell as much as 11% after an outlet run by the Xinhua News Agency published a blistering critique of their industry. The Economic Information Daily cited a student as saying some schoolmates played Tencent’s Honor of Kings -- one of its most popular titles -- eight hours a day and called for stricter controls over time spent. The online link to the post was removed hours later without explanation -- then restored to the paper’s website late in the day but with narcotics references stripped out. Tencent then followed up with a pledge to further limit play time for minors -- to just an hour during weekdays and no more than two hours during vacations and holidays. That’s a step up from restrictions imposed by China’s gaming watchdog in 2019. It also plans to forbid in-game purchases for under 12-year-olds, starting with its signature title. And more dramatically, the company broached the possibility of the industry banning games altogether for those under the age of 12, without elaborating. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/tencent-shares-dive-chinese-media-032842519.html
Prosus is pleased to advise Shareholders and Naspers N Shareholders that the Capital Restructure, consisting of: - the Prosus Articles Amendment, ie the amendment of the Articles of Association to give effect to certain aspects of the Capital Restructure, including, among other things, certain aspects of the Cross-Holding Arrangement and the creation of the Prosus Ordinary Shares B; - the Prosus B Share Transaction, ie the issuance of 1,128,507,756 Prosus Ordinary Shares B to Naspers to ensure that Naspers continues to hold 72% of the aggregate issued equity shares in Prosus after the implementation of the Capital Restructure; - the Exchange Offer, comprising the acquisition by Prosus of 197,408,377 Naspers N Ordinary Shares from Naspers N Shareholders in exchange for the issue of 448,991,535 New Prosus Ordinary Shares N in accordance with the Exchange Ratio of 2.27443 New Prosus Ordinary Shares N for each Naspers N Ordinary Share tendered pursuant to the terms of the Exchange Offer; and - the Prosus A Share Capitalisation Issue, comprising the pro rata capitalisation issue of 944,832 Prosus Ordinary Shares A1 to the Prosus A Shareholders as required in terms of the Articles of Association, has been implemented today, Monday 16 August 2021. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/prosus-n-v-implementation-capital-051500889.html
SHANGHAI, Aug 18 (Reuters) - China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) said on Wednesday that 43 apps, including Tencent Holdings Ltd's (0700.HK) WeChat, were found to have illegally transferred user data, and ordered their parent companies to make rectifications. China rebukes 43 apps including Tencent's WeChat for breaking data transfer rules | Reuters
Tencent Announces 2021 Second Quarter and Interim Results 1H2021 Key Highlights Revenues: +23% YoY, non-IFRS[1] profit attributable to equity holders of the Company: +17% YoY Total revenues were RMB273.6 billion (USD42.3 billion[2]), an increase of 23% over the first half year of 2020 ("YoY"). On a non-IFRS basis, which is intended to reflect core earnings by excluding certain one-time and/or non-cash items: - Operating profit was RMB85.6 billion (USD13.2 billion), an increase of 17% YoY. Operating margin decreased to 31% from 33% last year. - Profit for the period was RMB69.6 billion (USD10.8 billion), an increase of 18% YoY. Net margin decreased to 25% from 27% last year. - Profit attributable to equity holders of the Company for the period was RMB67.2 billion (USD10.4 billion), an increase of 17% YoY. - Basic earnings per share were RMB7.055. Diluted earnings per share were RMB6.916. On an IFRS basis: - Operating profit was RMB108.8 billion (USD16.8 billion), an increase of 42% YoY. Operating margin increased to 40% from 34% last year. - Profit for the period was RMB92.0 billion (USD14.2 billion), an increase of 49% YoY. Net margin increased to 34% from 28% last year. - Profit attributable to equity holders of the Company for the period was RMB90.4 billion (USD14.0 billion), an increase of 46% YoY. - Basic earnings per share were RMB9.492. Diluted earnings per share were RMB9.299. Total cash were RMB255.2 billion (USD39.5 billion) at the end of the period. 2Q2021 Key Highlights Revenues: +20% YoY, non-IFRS profit attributable to equity holders of the Company: +13% YoY Total revenues were RMB138.3 billion (USD21.4 billion), an increase of 20% over the second quarter of 2020 ("YoY"). On a non-IFRS basis, which is intended to reflect core earnings by excluding certain one-time and/or non-cash items: - Operating profit was RMB42.8 billion (USD6.6 billion), an increase of 14% YoY. Operating margin decreased to 31% from 33% last year. - Profit for the period was RMB35.1 billion (USD5.4 billion), an increase of 13% YoY. Net margin remained decreased to 25% from 27% last year. - Profit attributable to equity holders of the Company for the quarter was RMB34.0 billion (USD5.3 billion), an increase of 13% YoY. - Basic earnings per share were RMB3.574. Diluted earnings per share were RMB3.504. On an IFRS basis: - Operating profit was RMB52.5 billion (USD8.1 billion), an increase of 34% YoY. Operating margin increased to 38% from 34% last year. - Profit for the period was RMB43.0 billion (USD6.7 billion), an increase of 33% YoY. Net margin increased to 31% from 28% last year. - Profit attributable to equity holders of the Company for the quarter was RMB42.6 billion (USD6.6 billion), an increase of 29% YoY. - Basic earnings per share were RMB4.472. Diluted earnings per share were RMB4.387. Tencent Announces 2021 Second Quarter and Interim Results (prnewswire.com)
Kovi, a start-up that is disrupting car access in Latin America, has raised approximately $100 million (around R $500 million) in a Series B round. This new investment reflects the company’s continued growth: Kovi’s number of customers grew by more than 70 per cent in 2020 and the company now has over 11,000 users in Brazil and Mexico. By the end of 2021, they aim to add another 20,000 cars to their fleet. The round was co-led by Valor Capital Group and Prosus Ventures, and includes participation from Quona, GFC, Monashees, UVC Investimentos and Globo Ventures, in addition to Tinder’s co-founder, Justin Mateen and Paypal’s co-founder, Peter Thiel, through his family office. The new financing follows Kovi’s previously raised $30 million in 2019, which included participation from Maya Capital, which continues to invest in the start-up’s growth. Kovi will use the funds raised to expand its service to new cities in Latin America and double down on existing operations in Brazil and Mexico. Additionally, resources will go towards technology development, specifically data management and the company’s pay-per-mile capabilities (which is unprecedented in LATAM), as well as recruitment, with the hiring of developers, software engineers, and data scientists, among others. Car ownership in LATAM today is extremely inaccessible for the majority of the population, as 75 per cent of Latin Americans cannot own a vehicle because of the high cost of acquisition and maintenance. Further, financing is often difficult and expensive to obtain, as credit is difficult to access. When applying for loans, 60 per cent of applications are denied by traditional banking institutions and, when approved, customers pay high interest rates that are up to 30 per cent per year. "Our mission is to promote a revolution in this market, making car ownership affordable, less complicated and accessible to an underserved population,” says Adhemar Milani, Kovi's Co-Founder and CEO. “We want to offer a range of options to create a platform for urban mobility and create more possibilities for our customers. We believe this investment round will help us reach these goals.” As such, part of the funds from this round will go towards Kovi’s plans to further increase access to automobiles by launching new financial services and products. The company has already begun the build-out for these anticipated products earlier this year, launching its auto insurance offering, Kovi Seguro, the first tracked insurance for app drivers. "What sets us apart from competitors is our development of disruptive technologies. Driven by data science and analytics, we’re able to offer a better user experience and competitive prices," summarizes João Costa, Kovi's Co-founder. The high expectations following this new round is echoed by Scott Sobel, Co-founder of Valor Capital Group: "We see enormous growth potential in Kovi, as owning a vehicle is still a distant reality for millions of people in Latin America. It is clear to us that through disruptive solutions, owned technology and efficient management, the start-up is leading the changes in this market." Banafsheh Fathieh, Head of Americas Investments at Prosus Ventures said: “Kovi is improving access to mobility and empowering thousands to rent and own automobiles in Latin America. We believe Kovi has the potential to usher in a new era of fintech solutions, catering to the unique needs of Latin Americans. We are very excited about our new partnership.” Founded in 2019, Kovi has focused on increasing accessibility to cars for underserved clients, by combining technology, affordable prices and efficient customer service. The company was founded with the mission to make cars a reality for most of the population, not only for the 25 per cent that has access to the traditional banking system. In just three years, Kovi reached a 12,000 car fleet and a team of 700 employees. Prosus N : Brazilian start-up Kovi raises $100 million in new investment round | MarketScreener
Share repurchase programme Prosus will commence an on-market share repurchase programme of Prosus’s ordinary shares N (the “Ordinary Shares”) for a total consideration of up to US$5bn from its free-float shareholders (the “Programme”) in support of delivering the overall benefits of the Prosus voluntary share exchange offer to Naspers Limited N ordinary shareholders completed on 16 August 2021. Prosus has appointed an intermediary to execute the Programme within parameters set by it, allowing the execution of the Programme during open and closed periods. During closed periods, the intermediary will make its trading decisions independently from, and uninfluenced by, Prosus. The Programme will commence on 23 August 2021 and end on 19 August 2022, or sooner if the maximum consideration under the Programme is reached before then. The total consideration includes costs and related taxes. Prosus intends to cancel the Ordinary Shares repurchased by it under the Programme in due course, so as to reduce its issued share capital. The Programme will be implemented in accordance with, and subject to, applicable law and regulations, as well as the authority granted by Prosus’s shareholders on 9 July 2021, as renewed from time to time, including as to the maximum number of shares that can be repurchased under the Programme. Prosus will provide weekly updates on the Programme in accordance with the Market Abuse Regulation (as defined below) by means of press releases and announcements on the JSE’s Stock Exchange News Service (SENS), and, together with details on a daily basis, on the Prosus website (www.prosus.com). Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 23 August 2021 Share repurchase programme (prosus.com)
Biome makers raises $15m in Series B funding to secure position as a global leader in biological soil analysis (West Sacramento, CA) - Biome Makers Inc., the international standard-bearer for functional soil biology analysis, today announced a $15M Series B round led by Prosus Ventures, with the participation of Seaya Ventures, Viking Global Investors, JME Ventures and Pymwymic. Founded in 2015 by Adrian Ferrero and Dr Alberto Acedo, Biome Makers has spent the last few years building its BeCrop® and Gheom® proprietary products to promote sustainable farming practices using soil biology standard analytics. In parallel, they developed artificial intelligence-based tools to determine the most sustainable solutions for crops going forward. The new funds will go towards the company’s next phase of growth, accelerating the global expansion of BeCrop® as the industry standard for functional soil analysis and sustainable soil health recovery. As well as establishing Gheom® as an independent assessment program, measuring the impact of crop inputs and farming practices to support personalized agriculture. Agriculture’s current understanding of soil health is very chemistry-based, overlooking the biological layer of the soil microbiome, which comprises all the genetic material within a microbiota and is responsible for converting soil nutrients into forms that plants can intake. Until the recent microbiome breakthroughs from Biome Makers, agronomists have never had access to the kind of vital data required to make predictive crop decisions based on individual soil functionalities. By better understanding these soil microbes and, in turn, better understanding crop needs, growers can boost food production and build efficiencies around crop yields. As the global population is expected to grow to 10B by 2050 and global food demand is subsequently expected to grow by 25-50%, innovation in farming is imperative. Biome Makers raises $15m in Series B funding to secure position as a global leader in biological soil analysis (prosus.com)
New Delhi, August 30, 2021: This year’s search for India’s most innovative assistive technology startups is underway with the launch today of Prosus SICA 2021. Created last year by Prosus - in partnership with Invest India, Social Alpha and the World Health Organization – the initiative invites Indian startups with the most promising solutions in the assistive technology space to compete for an annual grant and access to the Prosus SICA mentorship programme. With more than 70 million Indians estimated to live with some form of disability* the societal impact of improving lives and empowering people through assistive technology can be immense. Prosus SICA was recognised earlier this month as “CSR Initiative of the Year” by the AssisTech Foundation. Prosus has committed INR 16,500,000 to the initiative over three years, and each year awards grants to three successful startups. Partners including Invest India and Social Alpha provide additional mentoring and financing opportunities, while WHO supports the programme with technical assistance. Search underway for India’s most innovative assistive tech startups in 2021 with Prosus Social Impact Challenge for Accessibility (SICA)
Bloomberg) -- Prosus NV has agreed to acquire Indian online payments service BillDesk for 345 billion rupees ($4.7 billion), making its largest global acquisition to date in the Asian nation. The European investment powerhouse’s PayU unit has struck a deal to buy the 11-year-old startup, creating a digital payments giant with a total volume of $147 billion. It will take Prosus’s investment in India to more than $10 billion to date, the company said in a statement. Prosus, whose biggest investment is Tencent Holdings Ltd., will be getting in on an Indian payments arena on the cusp of taking off. More than 200 million more people will adopt digital payments there over the next three years, fueling a 10-fold increase in annual transactions per person to 220, Prosus said, citing Indian central bank estimates. The Prosus deal could intensify competition in the teeming sector. Hundreds of startups from BillDesk to Walmart Inc.’s PhonePe and Ant Group Co.-backed Paytm are pitching customers everything from micro-loans to gold trading. BillDesk, backed by Visa, was one of the pioneers of online payments in India alongside larger rival Paytm. Its services are common especially among retailers in the country. Read more: India Is the New Hope for Tech Investors With Fund-Raising Blitz Investor interest in India is accelerating as Beijing pursues a campaign to rein in tech sectors from online commerce and fintech to gaming. Unlike China, where online usage is much more developed, many of India’s 625 million internet users are just dipping their toes into the world of video streaming, social networking and e-commerce. Opportunities in online shopping are particularly attractive, as e-commerce accounts for less than 3% of retail transactions. Tech startups in India are still paying to build supply chain and delivery networks. India had a record $6.3 billion of funding and deals for technology startups in the second quarter, while funding to China-based companies dropped 18% from a peak of $27.7 billion in the fourth quarter of 2020, according to data from research firm CB Insights. The acquisition would be Prosus’ largest to date, eclipsing its roughly $1.8 billion Stack Exchange Inc. investment, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Its PayU unit grew total payment volume 51% in the year ended March to $55 billion, Prosus said. Prosus was spun out of Naspers Ltd. in 2019 to diversify away from South Africa and give investors more direct exposure to its broad portfolio of tech businesses. Cape Town-based Naspers was an early-stage investor in Tencent and has tried for years to close the valuation gap as the Chinese business’s value soared. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/prosus-strikes-deal-buy-india-070004820.html
PROSUS INCREASES STAKE IN DELIVERY HERO Prosus has entered into an agreement to acquire an additional 2.5% stake in Delivery Hero ,subject to regulatory approval, through its subsidiary, MIH Food Holdings B.V. Prosus believes acquiring the additional stake is a sound financial investment that will afford it the ability to offset any potential future dilution which may occur in the normal course from, for example, convertible issuances, employee exercises and/or stock issuances. Prosus may increase its stake in Delivery Hero if future opportunities arise to obtain further shares at attractive terms, but Prosus has no intention of exceeding an aggregate shareholding of 29.99%. MIH Food Holdings B.V. currently holds 24.97% of Delivery Hero, which will increase to 27.47% post receipt of regulatory approval and closing of the transaction, expected by the end of September 2021. Prosus will remain the largest shareholder in Delivery Hero. Growing its position in online food delivery is consistent with Prosus's strategy to invest in platforms with global potential that offer online marketplace services in high-growth markets. Delivery Hero, along with Swiggy, iFood, Wolt, Oda and Flink comprise the Food Delivery portfolio, which has a presence across 69 markets across the world. The transaction will be funded from existing resources. Amsterdam, the Netherlands 31 August 2021 Prosus increases stake in Delivery Hero - Sharecast.com
