The bid by Africa's richest man, Aliko Dangote , to merge his sugar, salt and rice companies into one for improved efficiency and robust consolidation will not proceed for now.
Integrating the entities would have enabled Dangote Sugar, Nascon Allied Industries (already listed on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) and the billionaire's less-known rice company to leverage economy of scale as one business to gain higher access to capital and boost value.
But the move failed to meet a key requirement for the transaction to progress, Nascon Allied Industries said in a regulatory filing on Thursday. The suspension "centred around the current non-operational status of Dangote Rice Limited" by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), it added.
