South Africa: Canal+ Becomes First French Company to List in Johannesburg

Canal+ rose in its Johannesburg Stock Exchange debut after the French media group completed its acquisition of MultiChoice, giving South African investors exposure to the enlarged pay-TV and streaming company.

The stock climbed to R58.50 in early trading, above the reference price based on its London-listed shares. Canal+ has a market value of about £2.5 billion and becomes the first French company to trade on the JSE's main board.

The secondary listing gives Canal+ a rand-based market value of about R57.7 billion, large enough to enter the FTSE/JSE Top40 Index. Its inclusion will remove Mr Price Group from the gauge. Canal+ will retain its primary listing in London.

Canal+ took effective control of MultiChoice in 2025, and the African pay-TV group ended its Johannesburg listing in December. The combined company will use MultiChoice's SuperSport sports rights, local content production and DStv platform to compete with Netflix, Disney and other global streaming groups across Africa.

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Chief Executive Officer Maxime Saada said Africa will be Canal+'s growth engine and that the group is confident it can turn around MultiChoice, which has been losing subscribers. The company has announced a €100 million plan to revive the business and is exploring a "super app" that would combine DStv with other streaming services. Canal+ also said the listing should improve liquidity, broaden its shareholder base and align the company more closely with African investors.

Key Takeaways

Canal+'s JSE listing is more than a market debut. It is a signal that Africa has become central to the company's global media strategy. MultiChoice gives Canal+ scale in English-speaking Africa, sports rights through SuperSport, local production assets and a subscriber base that still has value despite recent pressure. The challenge is execution. Pay-TV is under strain as consumers cut costs and streaming platforms compete for attention. Canal+ must reduce subscriber losses, improve pricing, protect sports rights and build a digital product that can compete with global platforms.

The planned super app shows the direction: rather than only sell traditional TV packages, Canal+ wants to become a distribution platform for multiple entertainment services. The JSE listing also gives African investors a way to own part of the enlarged group after MultiChoice's delisting. For the JSE, the arrival of a large global media company helps offset years of delistings and adds another major name to the market. The test will be whether Canal+ can turn African scale into growth.

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