The Mergence group has acquired a controlling stake in Cadiz Corporate Solutions, with the team rebranded under the name Mergence Corporate Solutions, with a presence in Johannesburg and Cape Town.

Masimo Magerman, Founder and CEO of Mergence, said: “The merger will provide Mergence with additional deal origination, capital raising and financial structuring capabilities and capitalise on financial advisory opportunities.”

Well-known deal-maker Robbie Gonsalves will continue to lead the team of eight people, among them veteran mining analyst Peter Major.

The Mergence Corporate Solutions team will continue to offer services in the areas of Mergers and Acquisitions, Corporate Restructuring, Capital Raising, Black Economic Empowerment, Business Valuations and Derivative Strategies. 

It will continue its  partnerships with M&A practices in China through The Beijing Axis, and in India through Eternus.

The team has operated  for 20 years and been involved in some of the largest and highest-profile transactions in South Africa, advising on M&A transactions totalling in excess of R105bn over the last 10 years. 

They advised on some large BEE deals such as Telkom and MTN as well as some large cross-border transactions such as the acquisition by Marriott of Protea Hotels.

Mergence and Cadiz connected through a recently concluded transaction where the team was seeking a BEE partner for its client, Bahrain Fibreglass Group (BFG). 

Mergence consequently acquired a controlling stake in BFG’s operations in South Africa, with effect from December 2018.

Mergence was founded in August 2004 and is a well-recognised independent investment house and one of the largest black-controlled and managed financial institutions in South Africa.

The group manages assets totalling in excess of R40bn. 

Robbie Gonsalves, Managing Director of Mergence Corporate Solutions, said: “The merger of the former Cadiz team into the Mergence group has been seamless as some of the individuals have known each other for many years and the cultural fit is perfect. The team will benefit from Mergence’s empowerment credentials and access to deal-flow.”