Top Botswana Stock Exchange listed Chief Executive Officers this week urged companies to consider listing on the stock exchange, as the platform affords them an opportunity to raise cash for growth purposes.

The CEOs, which included heavyweights such as Turnstar Holdings Managing Director, Gulaam Abdoola, Sefalana Managing Director, Chandra Chauhan, Choppies founder and CEO, Ram Ottapathu, gave snippets of their respective meteoric growth in Botswana and the rest of Africa as an example of how listing can come in handy.

They were speaking this Tuesday at a BSE Inaugural Tshipidi Investment Forum, held under the topic, ‘ From private to public.’

“Listing has helped Choppies grow from a family owned business into what it is today. We have over the years raised funds in the BSE which has helped us with expansion, especially into Africa,” said Ottapathu, who played a starring role 11 years ago to ensure Choppies lists, ending years of operating as just a family grocery store in Lobatse.

The company raised well over P350 million in both the Initial Public Offer ( IPO) and private placement when it listed in January 2012. Choppies now has stores in Botswana and select sub- Saharan countries.

The Choppies top executive, further said the expansions were made possible by among others cash raising in the capital market. In fact, to show its appetite for cash raising in the market, the company has announced a P300 million rights offer, which among others will be used to reduce debts.

Speaking at the same forum, Chauhan told the gathering which also comprised of graduates of BSE Tshipidi programme, that they owe their overall success to the fact that they are a listed entity.

“We were the first company to list on the stock market,” he stated, adding they have raised cash several times from the bourse. The company is now in other markets such as Lesotho and Namibia.

At one point they bought shareholding in a South African retail consortium. The deal was successful, although they have now divested from the business after cashing in all their investment and profits.

Chauhan said most of their Rights Issues were successful, and this has helped bolster their balance sheet which led to strong returns ( dividends) to shareholders.

“They ( rights issues) were oversubscribed,” he stated. Ninety- five percent of Sefalana is in the hands of local organisations and individuals. “Listing also helps with boosting public confidence and good corporate governance,” Chauhan said.

Meanwhile, Abdoola, who is one of the biggest single shareholders of Game City Mall said listing has so many benefits. “When you list, you create a product that someone can either decide to buy or not. This largely depends on your strategy or prevailing market condition. Listing needs to be packed in such a way that it is appealing to prospective investors,” Abdoola said.

Since becoming a listed entity, Turnstar has grown by 300 percent, disclosed Abdoola.

Meanwhile, Letlole La Rona ( LLR), head of investments, Lesego Keitsile said the company’s listing came upon when Botswana Development Corporation ( BDC) divested from some of its major property portfolio. This led to the formation of LLR which immediately floated shares on the stock market to unlock more value on the said properties.

“Through listing, we have managed to create wealth for many Batswana, as they are now owners of some of our properties,” she said.

On the other side, she urged companies who are planning to list, to do more research first and see which model suit them best.

“Companies also need to risk profile their businesses before going public,” she added. The stock market will come in handy, especially given the fact that they ( LLR) have finalised an Africa expansion strategy.

“We will implement our ‘ Go to Africa’ strategy in a careful and calculated manner, alongside comprehensive risk mitigation plans to protect value as we scale up our business,” said the then LLR Interim Chairman, Oteng Keabetswe in the company’s integrated annual for report 2022.

Launched in September, the strategy sees the undersupply of quality industrial sector assets across the African continent as a prevailing opportunity in the short- to medium- term.

“We want to leverage our wealth of skills and relationships to enter the broader African market strategically,” Keabetswe said, adding that LLR has consistently delivered good returns to its shareholders.