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Mega stake sales put Kenya at top of Africa deals table
While Kenya has long dominated the East African region in volume and value of deals, it has often fallen behind economies from other regions such as South Africa, Egypt, Nigeria and Morocco in ticket sizes.
Mega stake sales in Safaricom and East Africa Breweries Limited (EABL) vaulted Kenya to the top of Africa’s deals table in 2025, beating Egypt, Nigeria and Mauritius in the list of the continent’s most active deals markets.
British multinational Diageo’s $3 billion (Sh388.6 billion) sale of stakes of 65 percent in NSE-listed EABL and 53.68 percent in UDV Kenya to Japanese beverage maker Asahi Holdings, was the biggest deal recorded on the continent last year, as well as the largest ever transacted on the Kenyan capital market.
It was followed in size by the sale of a 15 percent stake in Safaricom by the government for Sh204.3 billion to South Africa’s Vodacom Group, which also agreed to buy an additional 5 percent of the telco from its British parent Vodafone Plc for Sh68 billion, taking its ultimate ownership in Safaricom to 55 percent when the transaction closes. Both deals are expected to conclude in the course of this year.
These transactions saw Kenya’s disclosed deals value jump to $5.83 billion (Sh755.4 billion) last year, from $375.7 million (Sh48.66 billion) in 2024, as shown by a review of continental transactions by South Africa-based DealMakers Africa magazine.
The Safaricom share sale transaction was recognised as deal of the year in 2025 by the magazine, citing its strategic significance within the African telecommunications landscape.
The large Kenyan deals helped grow the continent’s deals value by nearly a fifth, despite the number of transactions falling in the year.
“Regional analysis by DealMakers Africa for 2025 shows that the number of deals and transactions recorded across the continent (excluding South Africa) declined by 17 percent year-on-year to 356,” said Marylou Greig, a director and editor at DealMakers.
“Despite the drop in deal volume, aggregate deal value increased by 18 percent to $17.33 billion (Sh2.24 trillion), reflecting the presence of several large transactions during the year.”
The twin transactions in Kenya were followed in size by global energy giant Vitol’s $1.65 billion purchase of Italian multinational energy company Eni’s interests in oil and gas projects in Côte d'Ivoire and the Republic of Congo.
The fourth largest deal was the $1.35 billion merger between Egyptian firm Orascom Construction and European fertiliser maker OCI Global in December 2025.
While Kenya has long dominated the East African region in volume and value of deals, it has often fallen behind economies from other regions such as South Africa, Egypt, Nigeria and Morocco in ticket sizes.
In 2024, the top deal destinations were Nigeria at $6.2 billion, Mauritius at $2.07 billion, Morocco at $1.2 billion and Ghana at $1.19 billion. However, Kenya shot up the deals list, surpassing Nigeria ($2.39 billion), Egypt ($2.29 billion) and Mauritius ($1.25 billion).
The large Diageo and Vodacom transactions that set the pace for the continent were backed by increased activity in Kenya’s capital markets, which saw three large corporate bond listings totalling Sh81.5 billion by Safaricom, EABL and Liaison Group.
Safaricom sold a Sh20 corporate bond in November as the forst tranche of a Sh40 billion, five-year green bond programme, while EABL’s five-year issuance in the same month raised Sh16.7 billion, part of a Sh20 billion notes programme.
Liaison Group, through its subsidiary Linzi Finco, raised Sh44.8 billion in a 15-year asset backed bond towards the construction of the 60,000 seater Talanta Stadium in Nairobi. The bond is backed by the stadium and guaranteed by the Sports Fund.
Other significant deals disclosed or closed last year include British oil explorer Tullow’s divestiture of its entire interest in the South Lokichar oil project in Turkana County to Kenyan firm Gulf energy, for a minimum of$120 million (Sh15.5 billion), and Family Bank’s Sh8 billion private placement to boost capital ahead of its proposed listing at the NSE this year.
This year, DealMakers sees a continuation of the robust activity seen in 2025, supported by ongoing structural reforms in key markets such as South Africa and Nigeria and the ongoing implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area.
Kenya has already scored a large transaction this year in the Sh106.3 billion initial public offering (IPO) and listing of Kenya Pipeline Company (KPC) that was concluded earlier this month.
South African lender Nedbank is also on course to complete a Sh109.6 billion cash-and-stock tender purchase of a 66 percent stake in Kenyan bank NCBA Group.
