The Tribunal has approved the proposed transaction whereby Capitalworks Atlanta GP (Pty) Ltd (Capitalworks) will acquire PGR subject to a condition placing a moratorium on merger-related retrenchments for a period of 2 (two) years from the merger approval date.
 
The acquiring firm, Capitalworks, is an investment special purpose vehicle (SPV) for the acquiring group which is active in the provision of private equity services in South Africa and globally.
 
The target firm is PGR, a public company listed on the JSE and A2X stock exchanges. PGR is a financial services group that operates in wealth, asset management and investment advisory services.
 
The Commission, which assesses large mergers before referring them to the Tribunal for a decision, found no competition concerns and therefore concluded that the proposed transaction is unlikely to substantially prevent or lessen competition in any market.
 
However, the Commission found that the proposed transaction raises employment concerns and recommended that the Tribunal approve the merger subject to the employment condition mentioned above.