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NewsDay

AMH is an independent media house free from political ties or outside influence. We have four newspapers: The Zimbabwe Independent, a business weekly published every Friday, The Standard, a weekly published every Sunday, and Southern and NewsDay, our daily newspapers. Each has an online edition.

Is the empire Farai Rwodzi built collapsing

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Rwodzi has business interests spanning across the financial services, agriculture, retail, hospitality, manufacturing, property development and mining. This week NewsDay looks at the troubled empire that Rwodzi built. Gulliver The engineering group operates several divisions including Morewear, Moresteel, Megasteel, Industrialised Galvanising and Fabricating, Lysachts Steel Merchants and Gulliver Logistics. Employees at Morewear last month demonstrated […]

Rwodzi has business interests spanning across the financial services, agriculture, retail, hospitality, manufacturing, property development and mining. This week NewsDay looks at the troubled empire that Rwodzi built.

Gulliver The engineering group operates several divisions including Morewear, Moresteel, Megasteel, Industrialised Galvanising and Fabricating, Lysachts Steel Merchants and Gulliver Logistics. Employees at Morewear last month demonstrated over non-payment of salaries.

The firm was last week suspended from trading on the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange (ZSE) after it failed to publish its audited financial results. In 2010 Gulliver shed close to two thirds of its market value and had the third lowest capitalisation on the bourse.

According to its last published results, Gulliver recorded a $3,337 million loss.

Apex Corporation The company has since shut down all its operations. In a statement attached to its full-year results to October 31 2011, Apex chairman Rwodzi said the board took a decision to stop operations after selling off Marondera Foundry and Philpot and Collins last year, while McMeekan Foundry and Precision Grinders were sold this year.

The foundries and engineering group has in the past disposed of its non-performing business units to clear the contingent liabilities of $10 million. In the period under review, the group recorded an operating loss of $975 000.

Interfin Bank Interfin acquired CFX in June 2010 through a $5,3 million deal.

Interfin Financial Holdings, IBC’s parent company, was the underwriter in a $10 million rights issue by the troubled financial institution in November last year.

The bank was last week placed under curatorship by the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe and subsequently suspended on the ZSE after investigations by the central bank discovered that it was technically insolvent, with a negative capital of $92,9 million as at June 8 2012.

ZimAlloys Rwodzi and business partner Adam Molai, through their vehicle Benscor Investments, acquired ZimAlloys from AngloAmerican Corporation in 2010.

A fortnight ago the company, which is the country’s second largest ferrochrome producer, was back in the media spotlight after announcing that it had secured a $60 million loan from Global Emerging Markets to rebuild its three furnaces.

The rebuilding of the furnaces is expected to last 12 months.

The company has been forced to shelve operations as a result of lack of working capital.

Eastlea SPAR The supermarket believed to be owned by Rwodzi and his wife Lorah was recently shutDown. Details emerging, however, suggest that the retail concern has over $1 million exposure to troubled Interfin Bank.