Johannesburg - Investec’s South African securities unit hired teams from Imara Group and African Alliance to provide equity, research and trading services on the continent and expand its existing business.
The team will be led by Simon Reid and include Andrew Schultz, Kuda Kadungure, Ryan Bell, Ziv Okun and Yeukai Gavaza, Johannesburg-based Investec said in an e-mailed statement today.
Reid is head of institutional trading at Imara Africa Securities, Schultz is the brokerage’s head of Africa strategy and Kadungure is an analyst, while Bell and Okun are traders for African Alliance and Gavaza a researcher, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
The group will begin on October 1, Reid said by phone.
Paul Stromsoe, an equities sales trader at African Alliance, will take over Okun and Bell’s duties, he said by phone.
“Imara still has a very good trading team,” Schultz said by phone from Cape Town.
“We’re still very much working at Imara and making sure that the handover is smooth,” with Justin Fletcher taking over as head of the desk, he said.
Investec Securities Africa will provide research for investment in “selected countries,” Investec said in the statement, without identifying the nations.
“The news released by Investec is a month premature,” Imara Securities chief executive Ann Mackeurtan said by phone from Johannesburg.
“We have a team in place, business as usual and there will be no stopping of the desk being operated as successfully as it has in the past.” - Bloomberg News