• Ariston’s board has approved a proposed move from the ZSE to the US dollar VFEX

  • Tea output fell 70% in the June quarter as funding constraints reduced harvesting

  • The shareholder circular must explain how the move supports the group’s financing needs

Harare - Ariston Holdings Limited, the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange listed producer of tea, macadamia nuts and other agricultural products, plans to voluntarily delist from the ZSE and list on the Victoria Falls Stock Exchange. The board approved the proposed move on 23 September 2026, subject to shareholder and regulatory approval according to the latest cicular.

Ariston would remain a publicly listed company if the transaction proceeds. Its shares would move to a market where trading and settlement take place in United States dollars. The board has yet to publish the shareholder circular setting out its reasons, transaction terms and approval process.

The proposal arrives during a severe decline in Ariston’s largest established crop. Tea production fell 70% to 532 tonnes in the quarter ended June 2026 from 1,770 tonnes a year earlier. Tea sales for the nine months fell 66% to 427 tonnes, while group revenue declined 13% from the US$3.73 million recorded in the comparable period.

Ariston attributed the weaker tea output to funding constraints and reduced harvesting. The figures give shareholders a practical test for the proposed exchange move. Dollar denominated trading may change how investors price and hold Ariston shares. Restoring production requires cash to reach estates before harvesting generates sales proceeds.

The group has already tried to ease that pressure through borrowing. During the half year ended March 2025, it obtained US$3 million in longer term funding, allocating US$2 million to working capital and US$1 million to capital expenditure. Management said the facilities would give the business time to stabilise operations and improve liquidity.

The original US$2 million working capital facility was due in April 2026, according to Ariston’s earlier disclosure. By June, the group was again reporting constrained funding and borrowing terms that management considered poorly matched to agricultural production cycles. Shareholders need an updated account of that facility’s repayment or refinancing and the funding available for the next season.

The timing of cash matters on an estate. Ariston pays for fertiliser, crop chemicals, irrigation, labour and factory readiness before it sells the resulting crop. Borrowing that falls due ahead of crop receipts can force the business to restrict the spending needed to protect yields. Lower output then reduces the cash available to service the borrowing.

Ariston has tried to direct more of its available tea into packed products for the domestic market, where prices have been relatively stable. That allocation can support the margin earned on each tonne sold. A 70% fall in production leaves substantially less tea to pack and sell, limiting the financial benefit of a stronger product mix.

Macadamia offers a nearer term opportunity to generate receipts, production fell 12% to 944 tonnes, while sales declined 46% to 376 tonnes. Management linked the difference between harvested and sold volumes largely to processing delays and harvest timing. Converting that crop into completed sales could improve cash inflows, with the result dependent on processing capacity, export execution and realised prices.

Bananas, poultry and commercial maize have broadened Ariston’s production base. Banana output rose 28% to 687 tonnes, poultry production reached 174,000 birds and maize harvesting began after planting on more than 200 hectares at Kent Estate. Tea’s contraction remains large enough to dominate the current revenue result.

Ariston’s 2025 accounts provide further context for the financing decision ,the group reported a US$3.13 million loss and borrowings of US$11.04 million at year end. Its auditors identified a material uncertainty related to its ability to continue as a going concern. Those conditions make the cost, maturity and availability of new capital central to any assessment of the proposed move.

A VFEX listing could give Ariston access to investors who prefer shares priced and settled in dollars. The exchange also provides a route for companies to raise foreign currency capital. Access to that market creates an opportunity for Ariston to seek funding, with any actual capital raise requiring its own terms and investor commitment.

The shareholder circular should therefore explain the financial case in measurable terms. Investors need the expected costs of migration, arrangements for existing shareholders, the intended treatment of the share register and any funding plans linked to the move. Ariston should also set out how prospective capital would be divided between seasonal inputs, estate maintenance, processing equipment and debt obligations.

A new listing venue could improve the currency alignment between Ariston’s shares and its dollar based operations. Its value to the business will depend on the financing that follows and the terms on which that financing is secured. More expensive or short maturity capital would leave the production cycle exposed to the same pressure.

The next agricultural season will provide the operating test. Tea output will show whether funding has reached harvesting and field maintenance in time, while macadamia sales will show how much of the crop already produced converts into cash. The VFEX circular will give shareholders the transaction case. Subsequent funding disclosures and crop volumes will establish its economic result.

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