JSE-listed automotive and logistics group Imperial has acquired a 25,4% stake in MiX Telematics (MiX), a company with interests in vehicle tracking and fleet management in South Africa and abroad. In South Africa, the Matrix vehicle tracking brand is the third largest vehicle-tracking supplier, Imperial reported on Thursday. Imperial CEO Hubert Brody said the acquisition of a strategic holding in MiX would further strengthen the relations between the two companies.

Imperial already has a business relationship with the JSE-listed MiX through its almost 250 new and used vehicle dealerships, which form a distribution channel for Matrix products. MiX said in a separate statement that its black economic-empowerment (BEE) partner, Kagiso Trust Investments, had transferred its holding in MiX out of Kagiso Strateigc Investments into a new company that it had formed with Imperial. "It is expected that MiX's BEE credentials will be enhanced by these transaction," the vehicle-tracking company noted. The share price of MiX jumped by 3,6% on the news to R1,16 a share. Imperial's shares were trading 2,6% higher at R107,50 after the announcement. Earlier this month, Brody reported that the group was looking to make more acquisitions