LONDON (Alliance News) - London and Johannesburg-listed Grit Real Estate Income Group Ltd said Thursday the South African Public Investment Corp has requested the company to replace Matshepo More as its non-executive director nominee.
Public Investment Corp, which is wholly owned by the South African government, is the largest shareholder in Grit Real Estate, holding a 28% stake. PIC holds large stakes in several South African companies and has a number of nominees on the boards of its investees.
PIC will nominate a new representative in "due course".
On Tuesday last week, PIC acting Chief Executive Officer More was placed on precautionary suspension with immediate effect to "ensure free participation of staff" in its ongoing inquiry.
Most of the state-owned asset manager's board were relieved of their duties amid a corruption scandal at the start of February. The only member of the board to stay was acting CEO More.
PIC then launched a forensic investigation after three executives, including its acting boss, were implicated in impropriety by a whistleblower.
More replaced former PIC chief Dan Matjila after he resigned in late November 2018 amid ongoing investigations into allegations of impropriety made against him. A judicial review - the Commission of inquiry into Public Investment Corp - related to these allegations opened in January and is ongoing.
More has been replaced as acting chief by Executive Head of Properties Vuyani Hako.
In Johannesburg, the trust's share were untraded at ZAR19.00 each, while in London the shares were down 0.7% at USD1.41.
Grit Real Est. (GR1T)