Anglo-American, a South African Giant, Buys Into U.S. Financial Company

South Africa's largest corporation recently acquired an interest in U.S. financial markets when a highly secretive and little-known commodities , trading company, Phibro Corporation, bought Salomon Brothers, the biggest privately-held investment banking firm in the U.S.

"The South African connection," as one analyst dubs it, stems from the giant AngloAmerican mining conglomerate, which owns 27.3% of Phibro's stock through Anglo's subsidiary, the Minerals and Resources Corporation poration (Minorco).

"This is the first case of a South African company having a controlling share in a major U.S. securities firm," says Tim Smith, director of the Interfaith Center for Corporate Responsibility. "South Africa will now have an important foothold in U.S. banking," he added, "at a time when Pretoria is having increasing trouble raising loans."

Only days after the Salomon takeover of August 19, Minorco moved to increase its representation on Phibro's board of directors, expressing its intent in a preliminary filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. "I've never heard of this type of thing unless the parties (shareholders) are clearly at odds," says Ron Shorr, analyst with the brokerage house Bear, Stearns. At present, Minorco holds only one of 15 seats on Phibro's board.

Minorco's effort to exercise greater control over Phibro is consistent with the AngloAmerican campaign, announced by chairman Harry Oppenheimer in March, to expand the company's holdings in North America. According to Forbes magazine, AngloAmerican is already the largest single private foreign investor in the U.S.A. The conglomerate produces 40% of the Western world's gold and markets 85% of the world's diamonds.

With the acquisition of Salomon Brothers, Phibro now, ranks as the 15th largest U.S. corporation, with 500 commodities traders in 45 different countries, and net earnings for 1980 of $467 million.

-Report by Jim Khatami who writes for Interpress News Service in New York.