Online Reporter
Business Reporter
Kavango Resources plc, a London Stock Exchange-listed company, is moving forward with its plans for a secondary listing on the Victoria Falls Stock Exchange (VFEX) to trade its ordinary shares in Zimbabwe.
The company’s Board approved the publication of a prospectus on June 26, 2025, which outlines the strategy to raise up to $13,5 million to fund its Zimbabwean gold exploration and mining projects.
The prospectus reveals that Kavango has already secured commitments of $8,5 million towards this goal.
This includes a $5 million convertible loan note facility issued to Comarton, a consortium of Zimbabwe-registered pension funds, as well as a $3,5 million investment from its major shareholder, Purebond Limited. The remaining $5 million will be offered to potential subscribers at the time of admission.
A key part of the listing process is the creation of a Branch Register to allow for the direct trading of shares in Zimbabwe.
According to the prospectus, the company will “admit the Comarton Tranche 1 Shares and the Purebond Limited Shares, with a combined value of $4 000 000 on introduction to the VFEX”.
The process involves shareholders first being registered on the UK register before being immediately moved to the Zimbabwe branch register, where Corpserve Registrars will then list the shares for trading on the VFEX.
Kavango’s strategy in Zimbabwe is focused on identifying and consolidating small mining claims into “strategic size packages covering potentially large orebodies”.
The company’s management believes this approach presents a “unique opportunity” as the country’s goldfields “remain underexplored using modern exploration methods and technologies”.
They also note that Zimbabwe’s greenstone belts have a long history of gold production and that historic high-grade orebodies are often “surrounded by ‘halos’ of lower-grade mineralisation” which have been “largely unexploited” to date. The funds raised through the VFEX listing and a separate UK subscription will be directed towards several key areas.
The prospectus details a significant portion of the proceeds will be used for the Hillside Project in Matabeleland, with more than $2,2 million allocated for mine construction and over $6,8 million for plant construction, design and erection.
The company has also budgeted over $1,7 million for a mining production fleet and $1,43 million for working capital.
The prospectus also reveals that a separate fund of approximately up to £8 million from a UK subscription will be used for “exploration and development work programmes”.
Of this, a substantial amount, “$3 004 406 (£2 204 004) for exploration and development costs in Zimbabwe, including drilling at the Hillside and/or Nara projects.”
The benefits of the secondary listing are extensive, according to the prospectus.
The company states that the listing will allow “Zimbabwean subscribers . . . to participate directly in any potential future success of Kavango’s business model”.
It is also expected to promote financial inclusivity and allow both institutional and retail investors in Zimbabwe to take part. A further advantage is the ability to hold capital raised through the VFEX in “approved local or offshore accounts,” which is intended to support the company’s gold exploration efforts.
Kavango’s principal activities are mineral exploration, mining and development, primarily in Matabeleland. The company has three main projects: Hillside, Nara and Leopard. At Hillside, small-scale operations are already generating revenue. The prospectus states that the company intends to exercise its option to acquire the Nara Project and has already defined a JORC-code compliant resource on sand tailings at the site. The company’s subsidiary, Kavango Mining, is developing gold processing operations at Hillside to generate cashflow and gain experience in Zimbabwe, with the goal of increasing gold production significantly following the purchase of capital equipment.
