A private equity consortium led by Ethos Private Equity, announced today that it has acquired c.80% of the RTT Group for an undisclosed sum. Other key shareholders in the consortium are African Development Partners II, a private equity fund advised by Development Partners International (DPI) and the Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF), represented by the Public Investment Corporation (PIC). RTT’s current senior management team and a black empowerment staff trust will hold the remainder of RTT’s
share capital.
Freddy Moore, RTT Group CEO said: “My management team and I are delighted to be partnering with our new shareholders. Our shared vision of growth will take RTT to new heights by expanding our offerings, and tailoring these services to specific customer needs. Beyond the excitement of this transaction, our focus remains ̶ as always ̶ on providing excellent service to all our customers.”
Anthonie de Beer, Partner at Ethos Private Equity said: “With a leading market position and differentiated business model, the consortium considers RTT a very attractive investment opportunity. RTT’s management team is experienced and energised; we look forward to collaborating with them to grow RTT to achieve full potential.”
RTT is Africa’s largest privately-owned parcel distribution company. For over 30 years it has been a market leader in third-party logistics and distribution and a forerunner in break bulk and express distribution.
RTT’s footprint extends across sub-Saharan Africa, comprising over 120,000m2 of warehousing and cross docking facilities. RTT has a combined fleet in excess of 1,200 vehicles and employs close to 5,000 people. Revenues are in excess of R2,5 billion per annum.
Arshad Essa, Partner at Ethos Private Equity emphasised that: “Our consortium has positioned RTT’s balance sheet to ensure that we are able to fund continued growth for the business.”
Eduardo Gutierrez Garcia, Partner at DPI added: “RTT is very well positioned to expand its service offering elsewhere in Africa. We are excited about our future work with RTT and its management team to create growth and value.”
PIC’s Chief Investment Officer Dr Daniel Matjila said: “The RTT transaction has provided PIC with an exciting opportunity to initiate its coinvestment strategy and we are very optimistic about the long term partnership with the management team and fellow consortium members”.
