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Bob Diamond provides succour to Atlas Mara

The ex-Barclays boss is trying to steer his African investment vehicle in the right direction
March 2, 2017

If you're not really sure what's going on with Bob Diamond's London-listed African investment vehicle, Atlas Mara (ATMA), you're probably not alone. After announcing the sudden departure of its chief executive, John Vitalo - an employee of Mr Diamond's when he ran Barclays (BARC) - it also managed to tap existing investors for a further $13.5m (£10.8m) through a placement of more than 7m shares at 191¢ apiece. Mr Diamond himself took part in the placing, coughing up approximately $1.5m of his own money to help boost the coffers. That makes him the group's sixth-largest shareholder, with more than 2.5m shares.

IC TIP: Hold at $2.1

Unfortunately, Mr Vitalo is not the first senior manager to leave the group. Last year the group lost its chairman too in the form of Arnold Ekpe, an African banking veteran. Mr Diamond has been serving as interim chairman since Mr Ekpe left.

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