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Deals hit Sh87bn on quarter two activity

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Businessman Peter Munga. His Sh4.8bn Britam share sale to Swiss Re in May was among the biggest deals in the quarter. FILE PHOTO | NMG

The value of disclosed deals hit Sh87 billion in the first half of the year, boosted by investments in real estate developer Century Developments and listed insurer Britam #ticker:BRIT.

Analysis of corporate deals in Africa shows that the increased activity in the second quarter helped Kenya close the gap on South Africa, Nigeria, Egypt and Morocco, which have all recorded deals valued at above Sh100 billion this year.

The Stratlink data shows that mergers and acquisitions have continued to dominate accounting for a third of the deals on the continent.

“This is reflective of the spirited attempt by companies to maintain a competitive foothold,” Stratlink senior analyst Julians Amboko said in an earlier email.

In May, US-based venture firm Kuramo Capital said it had taken up an undisclosed equity stake in Century Developments, which is owned by former UAP managing director Dominic Kiarie, and pledged to put in Sh20 billion into projects being undertaken by Century.

READ: Why US-based fund placed a big bet on TransCentury

American energy firm GE Power in the same month announced the purchase of a Sh40 billion stake in Centum’s upcoming 1,050 megawatt (MW) Lamu coal fired power plant. Britam in May also concluded the sale of a 14.3 per cent stake to private equity firm AfricInvest in a capital raising drive.

Last month, the firm announced that businessman Peter Munga would sell 348.5 million shares worth Sh4.8 billion to Zurich-based insurance giant Swiss Re.

In April, mobile lending firm Tala raised Sh6.5 billion from a group of investors to fund its expansion and product development.

This flurry of activity has helped boost Kenya’s deals volume, which in the first quarter of the year was below Sh10 billion in disclosed value.

South Africa, however, continues to lead the way in terms of deals, clocking a disclosed value of Sh450 billion in the first six months of the year.

It is followed by Nigeria with a deals value of Sh150 billion, with Morocco and Egypt following with transactions worth Sh143 billion each.

These totals are, however, for deals whose values have been made public, with a sizeable number of investors also opting to keep the financial terms of their deals confidential.