A long-standing foreign investor in Econet Wireless Zimbabwe has urged fellow shareholders to back the company’s proposed delisting from the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange, saying the move could unlock long-term value and give the group greater flexibility on strategy.
Simon Tex Edwards, a New Zealand-based professional investor who has held Econet shares since its 1998 initial public offering (IPO), said the proposal marks a reset for both the company and its investors.
“The decision to delist is the best decision for all shareholders in my mind after weeks of research,” Edwards said in a letter to shareholders ahead of the Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) set for Thursday, February 26, 2026.
Edwards is a seasoned frontier markets investor and has been involved in Zimbabwe’s capital markets since the early 1990s, when the country opened its stock exchange to foreign investors. He first met Econet founder Strive Masiyiwa in 1998, when the company was still rolling out its mobile network. Edwards was part of a group of international frontier investors that backed the then little-known operator, which later became Zimbabwe’s largest listed company by market capitalisation.
“Foreign investors started to flock to buy this little company and its price shot up until it was the most valuable company in Zimbabwe,” Edwards says.
He says that Econet grew from an estimated market value of about US$25 million at listing to around US$2 billion by 2018, despite economic volatility, commodity cycles and climate-related disruptions. Under the proposal, shareholders who opt to exit will receive US$0.50 per share. Edwards describes the offer as generous when measured against recent trading levels and comparable African transactions. Econet shares were trading at around US$0.08 a year ago.
“Even if they offered half that value, it would still be a higher premium than anything ever offered in a similar transaction in many African markets,” Edwards says.
Despite the exit option, Edwards said he plans to retain his stake, arguing that the bigger upside lies in Econet’s medium- to long-term restructuring. Edwards, who also founded a mobile telecommunications company in New Zealand, pointed to the planned spin-off of Econet’s infrastructure unit, Econet InfraCo, as a potential source of unrecognised value. He said many global telecoms groups have already separated or monetised their passive infrastructure assets, while Econet still owns most of its infrastructure outright.
“There has been no real conversation about the embedded value that lies dormant in Econet,” he says.
He adds that institutional investors, including pension funds, could benefit from the delisting, as private ownership would allow the company to pursue long-term reforms without the pressure of short-term market expectations.
“If your pension fund currently holds Econet shares, they will likely increase dramatically in value in US dollars the day after the yes vote,” he says.
Edwards says Econet has committed to continuing dividend payments and to providing liquidity via an over-the-counter (OTC) trading platform for shareholders who may wish to sell in future. He stressed that the move should not be seen as a permanent exit from Zimbabwe’s capital markets.
“Econet will, in my mind, definitely return one day to the Zimbabwe Stock Market, with its investors,” he said, adding that meaningful capital-market reforms and credible investor protections would be key to attracting new listings and foreign capital.
Edwards also cited Econet’s investments in data centres and next-generation mobile networks, as well as its social impact work through the Higherlife Foundation, which he said supports the group’s environmental, social and governance (ESG) profile. He urged shareholders to focus on the longer-term implications of the decision ahead of the EGM.
“Fertilise a unique company with your capital and expect to get more than dividends,” he said. “Vote to support the delisting.”
