Labat Africa sells cannabis healthcare business to CEO and director

LABAT Africa's share price ended 20% higher on the JSE on Friday after it announced that it is selling its cannabis healthcare sector businesses to its CEO and a director.

- EDWARD WEST

LABAT CEO and co-founder Brian van Rooyen. I SUPPLIED

(I SUPPLIED)

Labat had first announced its intention to enter the cannabis industry in November 2019, which at the time was a novel business on the JSE, as cannabis had previously been illegal in South Africa, barring limited medical uses.

The company announced on Friday that All Trading Proprietary, a company beneficially owned by Labat’s CEO Brian Van Rooyen, plans to buy all of Labat’s cannabis-related subsidiaries and operating divisions.

Earlier this year, the company had announced that it was in talks with All Trading, a related party to the company, regarding the disposal of some of Labat's subsidiaries.

However, on October 23, the company advised that these talks had been terminated, and a “binding agreement” had been entered into with 64P Investments Proprietary for the purchase of all the cannabis-related subsidiaries and operating divisions in the Labat Group.