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Thursday Dec 12, 2024
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With a welcome pickup in capital markets, the full-service investment bank Acuity Partners in recent months has further expanded the reach of its expertise, having been engaged in several corporate initiatives.
Among several new financial advisor and broker transactions done by Acuity was the acquisition of the 90-year-old furniture company AT Cooray & Sons by Ceyoka Ltd. of Nawaloka Holdings Ltd.
The company was also advisor and broker for the 45% stake in Ascot Holdings Plc by a consortium of local and foreign investors. The transaction involved 5,693,775 shares at Rs. 42.50 each with a value of Rs. 242 million. The transaction triggered the Takeovers and Mergers code and the mandatory offer is pending.
Acuity Partners, an equally-owned joint venture between DFCC Bank and HNB, was also the financial advisor and manager to the introduction of Renuka Hotels Ltd., which listed 40.3 million Ordinary Voting Shares of the company on the Diri Savi Board of the CSE.
This listing was completed last week. With a history of over 45 years, Renuka Hotel Ltd. owns and manages Hotel Renuka. Renuka Hotel Ltd. is also the parent company of Renuka City Hotels Plc and together form the Renuka Hotels Group with a combined room count of 99 rooms.
Acuity is also the financial advisor and manager to the ongoing Initial Public Offering of LVL Energy Fund Ltd. The latter is offering 120 million New Ordinary Voting Shares at an Issue Price of Rs. 10 each. The IPO is expected to raise Rs. 1.2 billion and is now open for subscription.
The company also brokered the acquisition of additional stake by high net worth individual investor Dr. T. Senthilverl in Sunshine Holdings Plc recently. Senthilverl bought 0.67 million shares at Rs. 54.50 each, bringing his total shareholding in Sunshine to 13.76 million shares or 10.08%. Prior to this acquisition he held 9.6% stake and was the largest individual shareholder and fourth largest shareholder after Lamurep Investments, Deepcar Ltd. and SBI Ven Holdings Ltd.
On the listed debt securities segment, Acuity is the manager to Sri Lanka Telecom’s latest debenture issue worth Rs. 10-12 billion which is expected to hit the market early next year.
Acuity provides financial solutions in Corporate Finance, Asset Management, Fixed Income Securities, Stock Brokering and Venture Capital Financing.
It is the only integrated, full-service investment bank in Sri Lanka offering a comprehensive suite of products and services in Fixed Income Securities, Stock Brokering, Corporate Finance, Margin Trading, Asset Management and Venture Capital Financing. Acuity is the successor to the investment banking related subsidiaries and divisions of DFCC Bank and HNB and was created through the consolidation of all the Corporate Finance, Equities and Fixed Income Securities activities of the two banks under the umbrella of Acuity Partners Ltd.
Acuity Partners further strengthened its service offering by way of a strategic joint venture with Ceylon Guardian Investment Trust (part of the Carsons Cumberbatch Group) to incorporate a dedicated fund management entity – Guardian Acuity Asset Management Ltd. It has market leading securities sales and superior distribution capabilities, having over 65,000 brokerage and fixed income customer accounts. All staff members of Acuity have a wealth of collective experience gained while working in the investment banking fields at their parent companies.
The following subsidiaries, associates and business units come under the Acuity umbrella: Acuity Corporate Finance – provides corporate finance and advisory services; Acuity Securities Ltd – primary dealer for Government securities; Acuity Stockbrokers Ltd – a member of the Colombo Stock Exchange;
Lanka Ventures Plc – a venture capital company and Guardian Acuity Asset Management Ltd – a dedicated fund management entity.
