Sawiris-backed Endeavour Mining makes debut on London Stock Exchange

Egyptian billionaire is largest shareholder of West Africa’s biggest gold producer

Egyptian billionaire Naguib Sawiris' La Mancha Holding owns 19 per cent of Endeavour Mining's shares. Photo: Reuters

Endeavour Mining, West Africa’s biggest gold producer, made its debut on the London Stock Exchange on Monday as it seeks to tap into a new pool of investors.

The London-based company’s entire issued ordinary share capital of 250,491,755 shares was admitted to the LSE's premium listing segment, Endeavour said.

Shares in the company, which is backed by Egyptian billionaire Naguib Sawiris, will trade on the LSE and the Toronto Stock Exchange, where the miner was first listed, under the symbol “EDV”.

“Our listing marks the start of the next phase of our evolution and will see us become the largest pure gold producer on the premium segment of the London Stock Exchange, with access to a deeper pool of capital,” said Endeavour president and chief executive Sebastien de Montessus.

Endeavour’s top institutional investors include Mr Sawiris’s La Mancha Holding, which owns 19 per cent, followed by Van Eck Associates and BlackRock Investment Management.

Endeavour did not raise capital in conjunction with its London listing.

The share price was at £1,705 ($2,407) as of market close on Monday.

In preparation for the LSE listing, Endeavour Mining was created as the parent company of Endeavour Mining Corporation.

Trading in the shares of Endeavour Mining Corporation will continue on the TSX until 9.30am Eastern Time on Wednesday, when trading will begin under the new corporate structure.

On the TSX, the stock price of EDV’s ordinary shares was down 4.7 per cent to C$28.69 ($23.63) as of 2pm on Monday.

Endeavour, incorporated in the Cayman Islands in 2002, is one of the world’s top 10 gold producers, with mines in Senegal, Ivory Coast and Burkina Faso, after an acquisition spree over the past year.

In 2019, a deal with Egypt-focused gold mining company Centamin failed to materialise.

But Endeavour then acquired two Canadian mining companies operating in West Africa, Semafo in July last year and Teranga Gold Corporation in February.

In March, Endeavour completed its previously announced $200 million investment by La Mancha, a privately held international gold investment vehicle chaired by Mr Sawiris.

With a net worth of $3.2 billion, Mr Sawiris is part of Egypt’s wealthiest family and built his fortune in telecoms.

He is chief executive of Orascom Investment Holding with interests in financial services, telecoms and resorts.

He has recently been keen on gold exploration. In February, AKH Gold, a subsidiary of Altus Strategies, which is backed by Mr Sawiris, signed four contracts worth $4.1m to explore nine blocks in Egypt's gold-rich Eastern Desert.

Meanwhile, Endeavour is looking to produce about 1.5 million ounces of gold every year until the end of 2023, increasing to 1.6 million ounces in 2025.

“Over the past few years, we have built a resilient business, with a high-quality asset base made up of low cost, long-mine life assets, attractive development projects and additional exploration potential,” Mr de Montessus said.

“This underpins our attractive shareholder returns policy that we believe will create value for investors across the cycle.”