Technically, MultiChoice Is No Longer Bankrupt

Since its obligations have decreased to the point that they no longer outweigh its assets, MultiChoice is no longer technically bankrupt.

Calvo Mawela, the CEO of MultiChoice Group, stated at the time that they were not worried about the fact that South Africa’s pay-TV giant was officially insolvent last year because they still had a healthy cash position.

“Those who are not in the financial industry will simply be shocked when they see negative equity,” Mawela told MyBroadband.

However, after talking with our lenders, they remain at ease with the underlying business. So far, everything is going well; they will only become concerned if they witness the money being torched.

MultiChoice reported on Wednesday that it has achieved a positive equity position through a number of variables in its annual results for the year that ended on March 31, 2025.

These included cost reductions, currency stabilization, and the accounting gain from the sale of 60% of the group’s stake in its insurance company (NMSIS) to Sanlam.

According to a review of MultiChoice’s balance sheet, the company’s liabilities fell more than its assets during the course of the previous year.

MultiChoice specifically cited improvements in its tax, long-term loan, and leasing liabilities.

Lower clearing receipts from increased remittances in the Rest of Africa segment, the use of tax security deposits in Nigeria, and the realization of prepayments were the main causes of the drop in lease liabilities.

In February 2025, MultiChoice made an early return of R927 million (approximately 52 Million USD) on the R12-billion (approximately 674 Million USD) syndicated term loan that was closed in the 2023 fiscal year, which resulted in a drop in its long-term loans.

The R1.2 billion (approximately 674 Million USD) in upfront after-tax profits from the NMSIS sale made this possible.

MultiChoice clarified that the resolution of several tax issues and the rand’s appreciation versus the dollar were the main causes of the improvement in its outstanding tax liabilities.

MultiChoice reported a 10.5% decline in assets, primarily due to a 17.6% loss in current assets, despite improvements in liabilities.

Program and picture rights as well as a decline in cash and financial equivalents were the two main causes of the decline.

According to MultiChoice, “the group held R5.1 billion (approximately 286 Million USD) in cash and cash equivalents at year-end and retains access to R3.0 billion (approximately 168 Million USD) in undrawn general borrowing facilities.”

MultiChoice clarified that the group’s ongoing efforts to reduce content costs were the main cause of the decline in program and movie rights.

The realization of content prepayments related to athletic events that occurred during the fiscal year 2025 was also included.

The huge rise in profits has MultiChoice declared a net profit of R2.02 billion, which was R4.54 billion more than the R2.52-billion loss it posted in 2023–2024, and it also became technically solvent.

This is also largely due to MultiChoice selling Sanlam the majority of their NMSIS insurance business.

Improvements in foreign exchange translation losses and fair value adjustments helped MultiChoice’s bottom line, according to an analysis of its income statement.

Therefore, during the 2024–2025 fiscal year, MultiChoice’s profitability and balance sheet were significantly impacted by currency stabilization and the sale of NMSIS.