The Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) has publicly censured AngloGold Ashanti plc after finding that the gold producer failed to release price-sensitive financial information on its South African market at the same time as it was disseminated internationally.
The finding relates to the company’s second-quarter and six-month financial results for the period ended 30 June 2025, together with its dividend declaration, which were released on 1 August 2025. The JSE determined that the information reached investors through international channels before being published on its Stock Exchange News Service (SENS).
AngloGold Ashanti is a global mining company incorporated in England and Wales. Although its global headquarters are in Denver, Colorado, the company is not legally a US-incorporated corporation. Following a corporate restructuring completed in 2023, AngloGold Ashanti plc became the UK-incorporated parent, with its primary share listing on the New York Stock Exchange and secondary listings on the JSE, A2X in South Africa and the Ghana Stock Exchange.
The JSE’s finding centres on the disclosure obligations attached to AngloGold Ashanti’s secondary South African listing. Under paragraph 18.21(b) of the Listings Requirements applicable at the time, companies with secondary listings were required to ensure that information released on another exchange was disclosed simultaneously on SENS.
According to the JSE’s regulatory notice, the results were distributed through Businesswire at 12:07pm South African Standard Time on 1 August 2025. AngloGold Ashanti subsequently published the information on its website at 12:10pm, while Bloomberg disseminated it after the information became publicly available. The filing was submitted to the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s EDGAR system at 12:22pm and appeared on SENS at 12:34pm.
The timing was significant because the JSE remained open for trading during the sequence. The NYSE’s pre-opening session, by comparison, was scheduled to begin at 12:30pm South African time, with core trading commencing at 3:30pm. This meant that South African investors could have been trading on the JSE for 27 minutes after the results had been disseminated through international channels but before they appeared on SENS.
The JSE said its investigation began after an external party alerted it that the information had appeared on Bloomberg before its publication on SENS. AngloGold Ashanti had proceeded on the basis that simultaneous or near-simultaneous disclosure across the two markets could not be achieved. The exchange, however, concluded that compliance with the requirement was reasonably achievable and found the company in breach of the applicable listing rule.
The exchange said the requirement for simultaneous disclosure is intended to support fairness, transparency and market integrity by ensuring that investors accessing different markets receive material information on an equivalent basis. It also noted that the announcement concerned financial results and a dividend declaration, information capable of materially affecting the company’s share price.
The censure concerns disclosure procedures rather than the underlying financial performance reported by AngloGold Ashanti. It also illustrates the continuing regulatory significance of the JSE to a company that has substantially changed its corporate structure and geographical footprint.
AngloGold Ashanti no longer operates producing mines in South Africa. Its remaining South African operations, including Mponeng and Mine Waste Solutions, were transferred to Harmony Gold in 2020, with Harmony taking full ownership from 1 October that year.
The company’s South African connection nevertheless remains significant through its JSE listing and the wider history of gold mining in the country. Earlier asset disposals also transferred interests to South African mining companies, including African Rainbow Minerals and Harmony Gold.
AngloGold Ashanti continues to maintain a substantial corporate presence in Johannesburg even as its operating portfolio has become increasingly international. Its current operations span Africa, Australia and the Americas, including producing assets in Ghana, Guinea, Tanzania and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
The JSE’s action therefore concerns a specific disclosure failure rather than AngloGold Ashanti’s broader relationship with South Africa. For companies maintaining listings across African and international markets, the decision also underscores the importance of ensuring that investors in different jurisdictions have access to material information on an equivalent and timely basis.
