A section of the Naivas Capital Centre outlet. PHOTO | SALATON NJAU | NMG Supermarket chain Naivas has raised Sh6 billion from the sale of a 30 per cent stake to a consortium of investors, including the International Finance Corporation (IFC), valuing the retailer at Sh20 billion.
The amount paid in the deal, one of the largest in the regional retail space, is disclosed in transaction documents seen by the Business Daily.
IFC, private equity firms Amethis and MCB Equity Fund and German sovereign wealth fund DEG teamed up to acquire the minority stake, with the deal set to fuel Naivas’ expansion across the country.
The breakdown of the stakes held by the institutional investors was not immediately clear.
In separate disclosures, however, IFC said it invested $15 million (Sh1.6 billion) while DEG said it provided $10 million (Sh1 billion).
Amethis and MCB Equity Fund are yet to reveal the size of their participation in the deal.
“Naivas is majority-owned by the Mukuha family who as part of this transaction will dispose part of their shareholding to a special purpose vehicle owned by IFC,
Amethis and other co-investors,” IFC said ahead of the deal’s conclusion on February 25.
“The Mukuha family will remain in the business as the main shareholders.”
At Sh20 billion, Naivas’ valuation beats the market value of all but one company listed on the Commercial and Services segment of the Nairobi Securities Exchange, including Uchumi Supermarkets (Sh128 million) and Scangroup (Sh4.8 billion).
EXPANSION Kenya Airways is the largest firm in the segment where Naivas would seat if it were listed at the Nairobi bourse.The new capital injection in Naivas is earmarked for expansion in the highly competitive local supermarket business that has attracted major players, including the Majid Al Futtaim-backed Carrefour franchise as well as South Africa’s Shoprite and Game.The Sh6 billion is nearly twice what an investor would have paid for a similar stake in 2013 based on the valuation of Naivas by Massmart, a South Africa-based subsidiary of retail giant Walmart.Massmart sought to buy a 51 per cent stake in Naivas for Sh3 billion, but the deal collapsed following a shareholder row in the family-owned supermarket.The Massmart deal valued Naivas at Sh5.88 billion, meaning the Kenyan retailer has increased its value nearly four times over the seven years, reflecting the growth and financial stability of the supermarket in a sector where top local chains such as Nakumatt struggled to remain afloat.Nakumatt was […]
