GEPF, PIC insist on joining board committee investigating Steinhoff
The Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF) and the Public Investment Corporation (PIC) insist that they form part of the board committee investigating Steinhoff International.
Steinhoff last week announced that its CEO Markus Jooste has stepped down amid allegations of financial irregularities.
“Now, more than ever, the Steinhoff matter makes a case for the need to rotate auditors and long-serving board members in investee companies - an issue that the PIC has continuously raised,” the PIC stated.
The parties added that it would ensure that the investigation process was transparent and that the terms of reference address critical governance issues.
Meanwhile, the GEPF said its members’ benefits would not be changed by these developments, given that the GEPF is a defined benefit pension fund, adding that the investment loss recorded as a result of the Steinhoff fall-out was only 0.6% of the total GEPF portfolio.
The total GEPF equity portfolio had created a value of R140-billion over the preceding 12-month period, and had performed better than the equity benchmark, it said.
However, the parties said albeit a relatively small reduction in the total portfolio, and despite the signs of recovery in the Steinhoff share price this week, they remained deeply concerned about developments at Steinhoff.
“We agree that the recent developments point to serious governance challenges at Steinhoff,” the parties noted, adding that they would insist on the appointment of at least two independent nonexecutive directors on the Steinhoff and Steinhoff Africa Retail boards.
GEPF and PIC further said the lack of independence of the board, including the possible conflict of interest as a result of Dr Christo Wiese’s appointment as interim CEO, was concerning.
“The material shareholding of the Steinhoff and Wiese families are perceived to create the dominance of controlling shareholder representatives on the board and, as a result, potential conflicts of interest,” it highlighted.
The PIC has also raised concerns about the absence of a clear assessment of the risks introduced by the Steinhoff group’s acquisitive strategy as the company has become progressively more complex.
Comments
Press Office
Announcements
What's On
Subscribe to improve your user experience...
Option 1 (equivalent of R125 a month):
Receive a weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine
(print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
Receive daily email newsletters
Access to full search results
Access archive of magazine back copies
Access to Projects in Progress
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
Option 2 (equivalent of R375 a month):
All benefits from Option 1
PLUS
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports, in PDF format, on various industrial and mining sectors
including Electricity; Water; Energy Transition; Hydrogen; Roads, Rail and Ports; Coal; Gold; Platinum; Battery Metals; etc.
Already a subscriber?
Forgotten your password?
Receive weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine (print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
➕
Recieve daily email newsletters
➕
Access to full search results
➕
Access archive of magazine back copies
➕
Access to Projects in Progress
➕
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA
R4500 (equivalent of R375 a month)
SUBSCRIBEAll benefits from Option 1
➕
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports on various industrial and mining sectors, in PDF format, including on:
Electricity
➕
Water
➕
Energy Transition
➕
Hydrogen
➕
Roads, Rail and Ports
➕
Coal
➕
Gold
➕
Platinum
➕
Battery Metals
➕
etc.
Receive all benefits from Option 1 or Option 2 delivered to numerous people at your company
➕
Multiple User names and Passwords for simultaneous log-ins
➕
Intranet integration access to all in your organisation