Eco Chinyii?
Bullish Thoughts loves innovative companies. The Inspired Network is on the market with the revolutionary Mobile Insurance Product known as Ecolife.
The life cover is supposedly free because the participating subscriber gets to use all their juiced up airtime.
For Econet Wireless shareholders (including wishful ones like Bullish Thoughts), the money will filter through increased average revenue per user (ARPU) which was expected to come off because of the per second billing directive by POTRAZ.
Hypothetically if all subscribers register (perhaps 40,000+ have already done so by now), Econet would be guaranteed $13.5m per month in revenues from prepaid subscribers.
If you are conservative and factor in Bullish Thought’s 3 Buddie lines and other factors, you can determine the trade off metrics to see if the $35m per month revenues expected to full year can then be achieved/ maintained.
The only thing Bullish Thoughts cares about is whether the cash will keep flowing to Econet so that the aggressive dividend policy is maintained.
Further innovation like mobile banking to capture the informal market more than welcome and can make Econet an instant superstar like Safaricom’s M-Pesa in Kenya.
Losing Money on the ZSE?
Disconnected Information at Truworths
Bullish Thoughts always believed that Truworths is a world class apparel retailer with world class ICT systems.
However, the experiences of the past week left Bullish Thoughts wondering about the quality of MI at Truworths, yes, Management Information.
You see, Bullish Thoughts was arm twisted to settle the madam’s credit account with Truworths. Because of the countrywide liquidity challenges, Bullish Thoughts delayed settling the account.
When cashflows improved, Bullish Thoughts rushed to the nearest Topics outlet and enquired on the dues, got a printout of the balance outstanding and duly paid.
On arrival home (pretty much early that day) to brag about it, madam advised that she had paid off the account and produced the relevant receipts to that effect.
Checking with Topics shop floor staff, we were referred to “Accounts” upstairs. On arrival and not seeing even a single computer but a pile of papers Bullish Thought’s worst fears were confirmed.
The various Topics branches & departments are not online. Bullish Thoughts can only get the much needed refund after month end when “books of accounts are closed”. No wonder why you have the Hunyani cases where some divisional manager can afford to manipulate the accounts for an entire quarter. Quite primitive is all we can say. Meanwhile Bullish Thoughts can’t wait for end of October to get his $140 refund!
But just how do management keep a grip on things at Truworths with such pathetic (mis)information systems?
Everything is OK at OK Zim
Bullish Thoughts remembers “How we almost ended up with an Afrofoods Grand Challenge”.
A timely recapitalisation by Investec through a hybrid loan structure just whisked OK Zim away from the jaws of ultimate collapse.
Fast forward to now, it is the best performing counter on the ZSE with a phenomenal 67% gain YTD.
The stores refurbishment programme has started and is currently underway at OK Kwekwe & Sam Nujoma Street Extension aiming at modernization of the shops. Four other stores are on target. Five branches have been equipped with high capacity generators to stem the losses that were stemming from fridge failures.
The fresh capital injection has evidently given the business a new lease of life with stocking having significantly improved. Arresting shrinkage and introducing more high margin products and general prudent overheads management will improve profit margins.
OK Zim is the largest retail group in Zimbabwe by floor space (correct us if we are wrong). They control 49 outlets with 78,000 sqm worth of retail space.
Obviously, it will be long before they can be comparable with the Shoprites & Massmarts of Southern Africa but they are catching up on the Afrofoods and SPARs of Zimbabwe.
If only they can improve the look and feel of the shops! Otherwise, everything is OK at Ok Zimbabwe.
Golden Tetrad
Tony Fisher & Team Tetrad must be feeling vindicated by the performance of the Tetrad Gold Fund since introduction.
Some sceptics have said gold has no real value because it has no other use.
Warren Buffet has had this to say about gold: “It gets dug out of the ground in Africa, or someplace. Then we melt it down, dig another hole, bury it again and pay people to stand around guarding it. It has no utility. Anyone watching from Mars would be scratching their head.”
The World Gold Council has counter-argued that the case for gold as a reserve asset” looks at gold in three contexts: strategic asset allocation and the maximisation of risk-adjusted returns in the investment portfolio; as a tactical overlay to hedge against current global macroeconomic risks; and as a high-quality liquid asset in periods of distress, the time when central banks most need their reserves.
The gold price movement has been phenomenal by world standards. When almost every punter thought the price had peaked, it continued hitting new life time highs almost everyday. The last time Bullish Thoughts checked, Gold Spot Price was Bid: $1380.70 Ask: $1381.50.
With fears of potential quantitative easing (QE) by the USA following poor job data in early October, gold is the safer haven with threats of a double dip recession hanging over the USA and equities not as secure than the bullion itself.
A weaker US$ also made it cheaper for holders of other currencies to purchase the bullion thereby providing significant support for the price.
Sovereign funds are stocking up especially Indian and Chinese governments trying to minimise the impact of their exposure to the USA fiat money.
So, yes, Tetrad Gold Fund has really been a worthwhile innovation or Blue Ocean if you are a student of modern day strategy scholars.
Naspers’ Big Brother: Munya a defensive stock
Bullish Thoughts has discussed with fellow “moralists” that Big Brother Africa All Stars (and the previous seasons) do nothing for the African public but destroy moral fibre. The agreement has been that Donald Trump’s Apprentice is much better in terms of value addition to both contestants and audience.
The discourse then concluded that the reason for the “immoral reality show” is about money for the show sponsors.
Just imagine that if two million subscribers send texts during the voting sessions and texts direct to TV, it’s $1m for the network operator.
In the meantime, for a measly $214,000 maximum payout, the contestant will be smoking on TV, drinking on TV, showring naked on TV and dirty dancing on Bullish Thoughts' TV.
Anyway, like R Kelly sang, Money Makes The World Go Round.
Still on Big Brother, if Zimbabwe’s Munyaradzi Chidzonga were a listed stock, it would be a defensive counter after having survived eviction 9 times to see himself to the final.
America's Youngest Billionaires
Bullish Thoughts as an upcoming entrepreneur (alleged at least), envy the Google founders because they created a money making machine from a seemingly simple concept.
The Facebook youngsters have a phenomenal product, but Bullish Thoughts still can’t wrap the head around how they are meant to make money in the absence of adverts.
What Bullish Thoughts can guarantee you however is that when Billions (of US$ of course) start flowing, we won’t fund legalisation of marijuana and funding condoms for Zimbabwe prisoners!
We will be ethical investors; Green Investors if you like.
Anyway, here is a look at some of America’s Youngest Billionaires
Dustin Moskovitz
Net Worth: $1.4 billion
Source: Facebook
Age: 26
America's youngest billionaire is eight days younger than his former Harvard roommate Mark Zuckerberg. Facebook's first chief technology officer, he left in 2008 to start Asana, a software company that allows individuals and small companies to better collaborate. For now, his entire fortune comes from his 6 percent stake in Facebook.
Mark Zuckerberg
Net Worth: $6.9 billion
Source: Facebook
Age: 26
The Harvard dropout and Facebook CEO was the biggest percentage gainer on this year's Forbes 400 list and the unwitting star of box-office hit "The Social Network." Last month he agreed to donate $100 million to Newark's troubled schools.
Scott Duncan
Net Worth: $3.1 billion
Source: pipelines
Age: 27
The son of the late Dan Duncan assumed control of part of his family's $12.4 billion pipeline empire after his father's death last March. Their energy company, Enterprise Products, owns more than 49,000 miles of pipelines.
Eduardo Saverin
Net Worth-$1.15 billion;
Source-Facebook;
Age-28
Brazilian-born Saverin co-founded Facebook with Harvard classmate Mark Zuckerberg and for a brief time had a one-third stake. When Zuckerberg quit school to relocate to California, Saverin stayed behind to graduate. A year later Facebook sued him; he countersued. The parties settled with Saverin apparently getting a 5 percent stake and co-founder bio on Facebook's site.
John Arnold
Net Worth: $3.3 billion
Source: hedge funds
Age: 36
The former Enron oil trader founded hedge fund Centaurus after the energy outfit famously collapsed. His fund now has $5 billion under management, and he and his wife Laura recently pledged half of their wealth to the Gates-Buffet challenge.
Sergey Brin
Net Worth-$15 billion;
Source-Google;
Age: 37
Emigrated from Russia at age 6; his mother was a research scientist at NASA. He met Larry Page in computer science Ph.D. program at Stanford and dropped out in 1998 to start Google. Brin now focuses on raising margins with Instant Search and building new businesses in communications, and he invests in space travel initiatives and Parkinson's research on the side.
Larry Page
Net Worth- $15 billion; Source-Google; Age-37
The Google co-founder dropped out of his Stanford Ph.D. program in 1998 to start the search engine. Nowadays his personal passions include buying up chunks of residential Palo Alto for a network of houses that use new types of fuel cells, geothermal energy and rainwater capture. He also rides a Zero X electric dirt bike and an electric sports car from Tesla Motors, in which he and Sergey Brin are investors. Page is a board member of the X Prize Foundation, a nonprofit looking for breakthroughs in genomics, energy and space exploration.
Daniel Ziff
Net Worth-$4 billion;
Source-inheritance, hedge funds;
Age-38
The youngest son of the late William Ziff Jr., who built the Ziff-Davis publishing empire (PC Magazine, Car & Driver, Boating) and later sold out. Daniel and his brothers Dirk and Robert inherited their father's fortune, which they have since reinvested in Ziff Brothers Investments. He recently got married.
Lorenzo Fertitta
Net Worth-$1 billion;
Source-casinos;
Age-41
Fertitta returns to billionaire status thanks to growing martial arts league Ultimate Fighting Championship, which he owns with his older brother Frank. Abu Dhabi investment is helping UFC go international. A scuba diver, he swims with sharks -- including tigers and great whites -- for fun.
Jerry Yang
Net Worth-$1.15 billion;
Source-Yahoo!;
Age-41
Born in Taiwan, Yang moved to the U.S. at age 10. He created his Web directory in 1994 with partner David Filo when both were Stanford grad students. Yahoo! co-founder made his debut among America's 400 richest at age 29. Still with Yahoo!, but no longer its head honcho. He sits on other boards and makes a number of charitable donations.
Of atheists and British political leaders
Ed Miliband, the new British labour leader, has stated in no uncertain terms that he doesn’t believe in God. He did not say whether he believes in Charles Darwin’s Evolution Theory either.
His brother David Miliband (former Foreign Secretary) has also confessed his atheism.
Ed Miliband’s declaration means two of the three leaders of major British political parties are self-proclaimed atheists.
Nick Clegg, the Deputy Prime Minister, also confirmed he does not believe shortly after being named Liberal Democrat leader.
Another “notable” Briton, theoretical physicist and cosmologist, Stephen Hawking recently pronounced that he believes God is not necessary in our lives. No wonder he doesn’t talk with his mouth. Otherwise hot coals will have been needed like in Prophet Isaiah's case.
Bullish Thoughts being a Christian, is just concerned by these developments in the UK.
Maybe that’s why behaviours which are worse than those of pigs and dogs are celebrated.
In God Bullish Thoughts Trusts!
Invest Wisely.
