One of Botswana’s biggest tourism investors and former President Lt Gen Ian Khama’s associate, British billionaire Stephen Lansdown has been forced to sell part of his FTSE100 company in a bid to save his Botswana business which has been badly affected by the Coronavirus.
Lansdown sold part of his stake in Hargreaves Lansdown Plc, the FTSE100 financial firm he co-founded with fellow British billionaire Peter Hargreaves, to support other investments among them the Botswana tourism business.
Pula Property Holdings, the Guernsey-based company that Lansdown controls sold 160 million pounds ($202 million) of shares of Hargreaves Lansdown in an accelerated offering through Barclays Plc.
The Guernsey based Pula Property Holdings owns a 50% stake in Mashatu Investment. Mashatu Investments controls 70% of Mashatu Nature Reserve (Pty) Ltd and the remaining 30% is held by Botswana Development Corporation. Mashatu Nature Reserve operates Mashatu Game Reserve, which compromises 40% of the Northern Tuli Game Reserve and offers game drives, horse-back safaris, cycling, walks in the wild and luxury accommodation. Mashatu Nature Reserve controls Rhodesdrift Investments (Pty) Ltd, Kanda (Pty) Ltd and Limpopo Valley Access (Pty) Ltd.
Pula Properties also controls Thamalakane River lodge and Croc B (Pty) Ltd. Lansdown’s involvement in Botswana started in 2007 when he became a shareholder in Tuli Safari Lodge.
Lansdown is believed to be a close associate of former President Lt Gen Ian Khama. The pair serve in Tuli Conservation Trust where Lansdown is a trustee and Khama is the patron.
