• AfriSun is delisting to gain greater operational flexibility, fund major refurbishments of core assets through asset sales and strong cash generation than relying on thin VFEX equity markets
• Occupancy remains depressed due to reduced NGO/government conferencing spend, tight ZWG liquidity and accessibility issues, even as international arrivals grow and foreign revenue contribution rises
• While African Sun and National Foods have exited citing low liquidity and limited capital-raising ability, new listings and upcoming entrants, and bitcoin trading indicate the bourse is still evolving and attractive

Harare- Zimbabwe’s largest hotel group by market capitalisation and asset base, African Sun Limited, is preparing to leave the Victoria Falls Stock Exchange. In a cautionary statement issued on 12 February 2026, the board announced its decision to delist, accompanied by a proposed share buyback offer, subject to regulatory and shareholder approvals.

The move comes barely three years after the company migrated from the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange to VFEX in 2023, making it the second major blue-chip exit after National Foods delisted in January 2025.

The group’s latest results show resilience amid continuing headwinds. For the first half of 2025, revenue rose 2% to US$23.53 million, driven by a 13% increase in average daily rates even as occupancy fell six percentage points because of reduced NGO-funded business and government austerity on conferencing.

EBITDA jumped 60% to US$3.41 million and profit before tax improved to US$0.91 million, boosted by one-off gains from asset disposals and investment income. By the nine-month mark ended 30 September 2025, revenue reached US$37.16 million (still only 2% growth year-on-year), year-to-date occupancy stood at 54%, and Q3 occupancy was 64%.

Cash and equivalents surged 87% to US$19.9 million, leaving the company debt-free and able to fund its refurbishment programme from internal resources.

African Sun now operates a tighter portfolio of seven premium properties concentrated in key tourist corridors which are the leased Victoria Falls Hotel, Elephant Hills Resort, Holiday Inn Harare, Holiday Inn Bulawayo, Holiday Inn Mutare, Troutbeck Resort in Nyanga, and Hwange Safari Lodge.

The group has already sold the Great Zimbabwe Hotel for US$4.2 million and the Monomotapa Hotel in Harare, and is finalising the disposal of Caribbea Bay Resort in Kariba. These sales are releasing capital to refurbish its flagship assets and support a share buyback.

In contrast, its main peer, Rainbow Tourism Group (RTG), continues to expand aggressively. In August 2025 RTG acquired a seven-storey commercial building in Cape Town for approximately US$5.6 million with plans to convert it into a hotel in partnership with international brands.

RTG has also strengthened its domestic footprint through the Montclair acquisition amid profit growth, reflecting a clear strategy of geographic diversification and new-build investments.

Zimbabwe’s tourism sector is recovering steadily. International arrivals rose year-on-year in 2025, supported by the new Tourism and Hospitality Industry Policy (2025–2030), improved global marketing, and infrastructure upgrades such as the Bulawayo–Victoria Falls highway.

Foreign-currency contribution to African Sun’s revenue increased from 29% to 37%, yet occupancy remains under pressure from tight ZWG liquidity, reduced NGO and government conferencing spend, and accessibility challenges to some resorts.

The delisting decision mirrors the reasoning given by National Foods when it left VFEX in January 2025 that the company no longer needs capital from public equity markets and has found liquidity on the bourse too thin to justify the compliance costs and reporting obligations.

With only around 17 listed companies at present, daily turnover on VFEX remains modest and meaningful equity raises have been rare, particularly for capital-intensive sectors such as hospitality. African Sun has shown it can finance its refurbishments (Elephant Hills, the Holiday Inn chain and the Victoria Falls Hotel) through asset sales and operational cash flow without the constraints of quarterly reporting and minority-shareholder oversight.

At the same time, VFEX continues to attract new entrants. The recent listing of Pfuma REIT took the total number of companies to 18, and Econet Infraco has signalled its intention to list as well. These developments suggest the bourse retains appeal for certain businesses, while other long-standing VFEX names such as Padenga Holdings, Innscor, Caledonia and Simbisa Brands have shown no interest in delisting.

The exchange also plans to launch an SME board (ASeM) and explore bitcoin trading, moves that could broaden participation and deepen liquidity over time.

For African Sun, however, the strategic calculus has shifted. The group is prioritising operational focus, guest experience and targeted high-return investments over the prestige of a USD listing. Its strong cash position, debt-free balance sheet and streamlined portfolio position it well to capture the next phase of Zimbabwe’s tourism rebound without relying on public equity markets.

Whether more capital-intensive companies follow remains to be seen, but the delisting highlights a maturing reality in Zimbabwe’s capital-market landscape: self-funded agility and internal cash generation can sometimes deliver more value than a listing that has yet to fully deliver the promised liquidity and capital access.

African Sun’s departure from VFEX is therefore neither a retreat nor a failure. It is a pragmatic acknowledgement that, for this particular business at this particular moment, the costs and constraints of staying listed outweigh the benefits.

The hospitality sector’s long investment cycles and need for patient capital have simply found a more efficient home outside the exchange at least for now. As VFEX continues to evolve and welcome new listings, it may yet attract companies for which the platform is a better strategic fit.

For African Sun, the chapter on VFEX has closed, but the story of focused, high-quality Zimbabwean hospitality is clearly entering a new and promising phase.

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