Malaysian tycoon Vincent Tan cuts Berjaya stake in asset sales

[KUALA LUMPUR] Malaysian tycoon Vincent Tan sold RM115 million (S$37 million) worth of shares in conglomerate Berjaya, extending a series of disposals that have reduced his holding in the company to about 15 per cent.

The founder of Berjaya offloaded 461.65 million shares through seven transactions on May 28, cutting his direct stake to 4.1 per cent and his deemed interest to about 11 per cent, according to a filing to Bursa Malaysia late Wednesday (Jun 3). Berjaya shares closed at 24.5 sen on the day of the trades and were unchanged early Thursday.

The shares were sold through nominee accounts, including Alliancegroup Nominees (Tempatan), MBSB Investment Nominees (Tempatan) and CGS International Nominees Malaysia (Tempatan).

The latest transactions reduced Tan’s total interest in Berjaya from roughly 23 per cent previously, based on the company’s 5.9 billion outstanding shares and Bloomberg calculations.

Separate filings also show Tan is no longer a substantial shareholder in six listed companies, including Salcon, REDtone Digital and Sports Toto, after his deemed interests through Berjaya were reduced. The tycoon, however, remains a substantial shareholder in 7-Eleven Malaysia Holdings, Berjaya Food and Berjaya Assets, albeit with smaller holdings.

The move marks the latest in a series of disposals by Tan after an earlier sale of a 5.25 per cent stake in Berjaya in March. Bloomberg previously reported that he is considering selling his remaining 30 per cent stake in Prudential Assurance Malaysia after disposing of a 19 per cent holding earlier this year. BLOOMBERG