UK development finance institution British International Investment (BII) has reached a deal to sell its 10.13 percent stake in I&M Group to East Africa Growth Holding.
The buyer of the stake is an investment vehicle established by Africinvest Fund IV LLC, Africinvest IV Netherlands C.V. and AfricInvest Financial Inclusion Vehicle LLC.
Parties to the transaction have not disclosed the value of the transaction but the deal would stand at least Sh2.9 billion based on the valuation of BII’s stake on the Nairobi Securities Exchange.
“Completion of the proposed transaction is subject to certain conditions that are customary to transactions of this nature including receipt of all regulatory approvals in Kenya and in other countries where the company has operating subsidiaries,” I&M said in a statement.
The buyer of a stake is a related party to the British DFI, which is an investor in Africinvest Fund IV, a pan-African fund which aims to foster the growth of African enterprises and which has investments in mid-cap and growth-oriented companies in sectors including finance, agribusiness and logistics.
BII purchased a 10.68 percent equity stake in the Nairobi headquartered banking group in April 2016 when it was known as the CDC Group with the investment having underlined the DFI’s commitment to supporting lending to small and medium sized enterprises in East Africa.
According to the latest I&M Holdings annual report, BII was the lending group’s fourth largest shareholder after Minard Holdings Limited, Tecoma Limited and Ziyungi Limited whose stakes sit at 21.6 percent, 18.4 percent and 17.8 percent respectively.
I&M Holdings Plc traces its start to 1950 when it was first incorporated as City Trust Limited before the founding of I&M Bank in 1974, first as a financial services company.
Today, the group’s regional network reaches Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda and Mauritius.
