Vodacom Group now controls Safaricom. On 30 June 2026, Vodafone Kenya completed a block trade on the Nairobi Securities Exchange, acquiring 6.01 billion shares — representing 15% of Safaricom’s issued share capital — from the Government of Kenya at Ksh 34 per share.
All conditions precedent were fulfilled or waived the same day. Vodacom simultaneously completed an internal reorganisation that transferred Vodafone International Holdings’ remaining 12.5% stake in Vodafone Kenya to Vodacom, lifting Vodacom’s ownership of the intermediate holding company to 100%. The combined effect raises Vodacom’s effective stake in Safaricom from approximately 35% to 55%, converting Safaricom from an associate to a fully consolidated subsidiary under IFRS.
The Capital Markets Authority of Kenya granted Vodafone Kenya an exemption from triggering a mandatory takeover offer under the Capital Markets (Take-overs and Mergers) Regulations 2002, covering both the government share acquisition and the internal Vodafone Kenya restructuring.
On 26 June, the Court of Appeal in Nairobi lifted a conservatory order that had frozen the transaction since March, finding that the government had met the threshold for a stay and that public interest supported the deal proceeding. A constitutional petition filed by activists, including Tony Gachoka and Professor Frederick Ogola, who challenged the legality of the disposal and questioned whether the sale adequately protected public assets, remains live before the High Court.
A Transaction Six Months in the Making
The deal traces back to 4 December 2025, when the Government of Kenya announced plans to sell its 15% stake in Safaricom, valued at the time at approximately Ksh 204.3 billion, at a price of Ksh 34 per share. Safaricom was trading at Ksh 29.45 on the day of the announcement, meaning the sale priced at a 15.5% premium to the prevailing market price. The government received a total of Ksh 244.5 billion, including Ksh 40.2 billion upfront as a payment for future dividend rights.
This marked the government’s second divestiture in Safaricom. The first came in 2008, when it sold a 25% stake through an IPO, reducing its shareholding from 60% to 35% and raising Ksh 50 billion. The 2026 transaction brings that holding down to 20%.
In exchange for allowing the transaction, the Government of Kenya secured several commitments from Vodacom: no employee redundancies outside the ordinary course of business, continued support for the Safaricom Foundation and M-Pesa Foundation, prior consultation before any expansion outside Kenya excluding existing operations, a requirement that the Safaricom chairperson and chief executive officer remain Kenyan citizens at all times, no changes to the executive committee without the consent of the chief executive, and no changes to the Safaricom corporate brand including its name, trademarks or logos.
What the New Ownership Structure Looks Like
Following completion, Safaricom’s shareholding now sits as follows: Vodafone Kenya Limited holds 55%, the Government of Kenya retains 20%, and general public investors hold the remaining 25% through the Nairobi Securities Exchange. Safaricom remains listed on the NSE with no plans to delist.
The accounting consequences are significant. Under IFRS, Safaricom moves from equity accounting as an associate to full consolidation inside Vodacom’s financial statements, materially expanding the scale of Vodacom’s reported numbers. Vodacom reported EBITDA of R63 billion for the 2026 financial year. Safaricom reported EBITDA of R29 billion over the same period. Consolidated, those figures represent a combined telecommunications, fintech and technology group of considerable weight across East and Southern Africa.
Vodacom’s Strategic Logic
Vodacom Group CEO Shameel Joosub described the completion as a turning point:
“This is a landmark moment for Vodacom, for Safaricom, and for the communities we serve across East Africa. Acquiring majority ownership in Safaricom strengthens our position as a market leader, while at the same time unlocking new opportunities to drive digital and financial inclusion at scale in Kenya and Ethiopia.”
The transaction sits at the centre of Vodacom’s Vision 2030 strategy, which targets deeper leadership across Africa’s growth markets and a broader digital and financial services portfolio. Vodacom now operates across a connected arc of markets stretching from South Africa through East and Central Africa to Egypt, with Safaricom at the heart of its East African presence. TechFinancials
Safaricom brings considerable weight to that position. M-Pesa now generates 44% of Safaricom’s Kenya revenue, and Safaricom’s expansion into Ethiopia has established a growing customer base of approximately 14 million users, alongside a portfolio of cloud, IoT and enterprise services that positions the company for continued regional growth. The M-Pesa question has not gone away entirely: the Central Bank of Kenya has long pushed for M-Pesa’s separation from Safaricom’s core telecom business, with a potential Ksh 75 billion tax liability standing as the main obstacle. Vodacom has consistently rejected a spin-off, and that position remains unchanged following completion of this transaction.
Kenya’s Position After the Sale
National Treasury Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi placed the transaction in longer-term context: “Twenty-five years ago, the Government of Kenya made a founding investment in a mobile telephone licence. That investment has grown into Safaricom, a company that has transformed financial inclusion across Africa, connected more than fifty million Kenyans, and contributed over one-and-a-half trillion shillings to the Exchequer. Today, we crystallise a portion of that extraordinary value to invest in the roads, the energy systems, the water infrastructure, and the airports that will power Kenya’s next chapter of growth. We do so lawfully, transparently, and with the express authority of Parliament. Safaricom’s best days are not behind it. They are ahead of it. And Kenya remains its home.”
The government retains a seat at the table. With a 20% strategic stake, board representation and contractual protections covering jobs, branding and executive appointments, the state preserves meaningful oversight of a company that remains central to Kenya’s digital and financial infrastructure. The constitutional challenge before the High Court means that legal chapter is not yet closed, and Safaricom and its shareholders will watch proceedings with close attention.
Vodacom intends to update the market on medium-term targets on or around 27 July 2026, when the Group publishes its first quarter results.
