Making Headlines: QKR … Who is That?

With news of a possible billion-dollar takeover bid for Eritrea-focused copper miner Nevsun Resources (TSX:NSU) making headlines on Thursday, investors are probably scratching their heads about QKR.

Funded by former JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM) banker Lloyd Pengilly, QKR is a private mining company with a focus on building a diversified portfolio of development and growth assets in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, as well as in the Americas. Also on QKR’s team of notable names are former BHP Billiton (NYSE:BHP) chief financial officer Andre Liebenberg and David Munro, former non-executive director of Lonmin (LSE:LMI) and chief development officer at BHP Billiton.

Earlier in 2014, QKR acquired AngloGold Ashanti’s (NYSE:AU) Navachab gold mine in Namibia for $110 million. If it adds Nevsun’s Bisha copper mine to its portfolio, that will be its second acquisition, and will fall in line with its mission of sourcing assets that are close to production from companies that are having a hard time funding them.

Securities Disclosure: I, Vivien Diniz, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.