Ringier has entered into an agreement to acquire all shares in Ringier One Africa Media (ROAM) from its co-shareholder SEEK Ltd. as well as from the two other minority shareholders Jabavu Limited and Ceatonia Limited. The closing of the transaction is subject to regulatory approval.
The acquisition underlines Ringier’s long-term commitment to the African continent and its conviction to invest in the fast-growing and ever-digitizing markets in Sub-Saharan Africa. SEEK, an Australian-based operator of online employment marketplaces, continues to strategically focus on its core markets in the Asia-Pacific region as well as in Latin America.
As Swiss-backed owner of leading digital marketplaces in Sub-Saharan Africa, ROAM operates Africa’s number one digital job marketplaces under the roof of its newly formed The African Talent Company (TATC), as well as leading real estate and horizontal platforms such as Buy Rent Kenya and Expat-Dakar (Senegal). TATC, a fast-growing division in digital recruitment, bridges the talent gap in Sub-Saharan Africa with unique, home-grown solutions and operates career development and recruitment platforms in Nigeria and Ghana under the brand of Jobberman, in Kenya and Uganda under the brand of BrighterMonday.
Axel Konjack, Head Global Marketplaces and Member of the Group Executive Board Ringier AG: “Our acquisition of SEEK’s shares is an important milestone and commitment to the strategic journey of ROAM. The takeover strengthens our long-term investment in digital marketplaces in Jobs, Recruiting, Real Estate and Horizontals in Sub-Saharan Africa. We believe in the potential of data, technology and strategic partnerships, for example with the MasterCard Foundation, to provide millions of young Africans with job opportunities. With our great teams on the ground and our engineering Hub in Cape Town, South Africa, we have a robust set-up for the next phase of growth and digitization jointly with our customers.”
Ronnie Fink, Managing Director Corporate Development at Seek Investments: “In 2016, we played a key role in supporting the financing of One Africa Media into the newly formed African Classifieds joint venture Ringier One Africa Media (ROAM) together with Ringier and Tiger Global Management. ROAM Jobs has positioned itself successfully for the future with The African Talent Company and the expansion of its mandate to include offline recruitment, outsourcing and e-learning to develop the Subsaharan-African recruitment market. While SEEK’s exit supports its current investment focus, we continue to believe in ROAM’s future on the African continent.”