Key Factors
- Lesaka Applied sciences acquires Recharger for $28 million, increasing its presence in South Africa’s non-public utilities market and fintech sector.
- The acquisition contains R43 million ($2 million) to settle Recharger’s mortgage and can shut by Q3 2025, pending regulatory approval.
- Supported by African Rainbow Capital, Lesaka continues increasing with acquisitions like Adumo and Touchsides, strengthening its fintech portfolio.
Lesaka Applied sciences, a fintech agency backed by African Rainbow Capital (ARC)—the funding group led by South Africa’s first Black billionaire, Patrice Motsepe—has acquired Recharger, a frontrunner in pay as you go electrical energy submetering and funds, for $28 million.
The deal, which strengthens Lesaka’s place within the fintech sector, entails the acquisition of all Recharger’s shares. It follows Lesaka’s recent acquisition of payment tech company Adumo.
The transaction, valued at R332 million ($18 million) in money and R175 million ($10 million) in Lesaka inventory, might be accomplished in two phases—the primary fee at closing and the second a 12 months later.
Strategic entry into South Africa’s non-public utilities market
As a part of the deal, Lesaka may even inject R43 million ($2 million) to settle Recharger’s present mortgage. The transaction, valued at an enterprise value-to-EBITDA a number of of roughly 6.0 instances, is slated to shut by the third quarter of fiscal 2025, pending regulatory approval.
Recharger might be built-in into Lesaka’s Service provider Division, underneath its Enterprise pillar, marking a strategic transfer into South Africa’s non-public utilities sector. This acquisition may even improve Lesaka’s portfolio of different fee options.
Serving over 460,000 registered meters, Recharger facilitates pay as you go utility funds for landlords, simplifying tenant billing and collections.
Motsepe’s strategic affect in fintech
Lesaka, listed on NASDAQ and JSE, gives a variety of fintech providers, together with banking, lending, insurance coverage, and invoice funds. With a market cap of $413.5 million, the corporate continues to drive digital commerce transformation in its goal markets.
Motsepe’s African Rainbow Capital (ARC) continues to help Lesaka’s development, increasing its fintech portfolio and enhancing his affect within the sector. Along with his oblique stake in Lesaka, Motsepe holds a big stake in TymeBank, South Africa’s main digital financial institution, and is diversifying his wealth from mining, which makes up the vast majority of his $2.9 billion fortune.
Lesaka’s current acquisitions, together with a R1.59 billion ($85 million) deal for Adumo and an settlement to accumulate Touchsides, a South African knowledge analytics and service provider providers agency, additional strengthen its place within the funds sector. This growth highlights the corporate’s technique to capitalize on Southern Africa’s rising fintech ecosystem.
