Author: Muindi

Ascent Capital Africa Ltd, a private equity fund manager, has sold its stake in Uganda’s Guardian Health Ltd, to Kenya’s online retail pharmacy and beauty platform, MyDawa Holdings Limited. The sale of Guardian Health Ltd. marks the second exit for Ascent Rift Valley Fund, following the sale of Medpharm Holdings, a pharmaceutical manufacturer in Ethiopia, in Q4 2022. The deal was advised by I&M Burbidge Capital, a corporate finance advisory firm. Guardian Health Ltd was founded in 2012 with the aim of providing affordable and quality medicines to Ugandans. It also sells beauty and personal care products. The company has…

Twiga Foods, a Kenyan tech-enabled food distribution platform, has cut jobs, citing a tough economic environment affecting purchasing power. The company said it had to make some roles redundant and resize its operations in different regions, following a review of its business model. “The business has undertaken strategic operating adjustments to enhance its service delivery capacity over the past few months. This has been influenced by the current business environment, where people’s purchasing power continues to decline,” Twiga said in a statement issued on Saturday, August 1. This is the third time in less than a year that Twiga Foods…

Co-op Bank of Kenya has recorded a 7.4 per cent increase in its half-year profits, reaching Shs 12.1 billion in the first six months of 2023.  This is an improvement from the Shs 11.5 billion earned in the same period in 2022. According to a statement issued on Thursday, Co-op Bank Group Chief Executive Gideon Muriuki attributed the performance to the growth in lending, reduced expenses, and higher net interest income. Mr Muriuki noted that the bank’s non-interest-funded income rose by four per cent to Sh13.8 billion from Sh13.3 billion in the first half of 2022. The bank’s net interest…

Safaricom Ethiopia’s M-PESA mobile money service went live in Ethiopia on Wednesday.  The service will enable customers to send and receive money, pay bills, buy airtime, and access other financial services using their mobile phones. Safaricom Ethiopia received the Payment Instrument Issuer License from the National Bank of Ethiopia in May 2023 after winning a telecom license in a competitive bidding process.  The company has invested over $850 million to roll out its network and services in the country, which has a population of over 110 million people. Stanley Njoroge, interim CEO of Safaricom Ethiopia, said that M-PESA will provide…

Equity Group Holding has recorded a 7.8% increase in its half-year profit after tax, which rose to Sh26.3 billion from Sh24.4 billion in the same period in 2022. The lender attributed the growth to its diversified business model, which saw its revenue increase across various segments. “Our strategic pursuit has resiliently positioned us to weather the macro-economic headwinds and turbulence,” said James Mwangi, the Group’s Chief Executive Officer. He added that the regional expansion and business diversification had reduced the reliance on the Kenyan banking subsidiary, which contributed 55% of total assets and 55% of profit before tax. The other…

Carrefour, a leading retailer in Africa, has announced a new initiative to empower and recruit young talent from Kenya and five other countries. The Retail Graduate Programme, launched in collaboration with 12 top universities, aims to provide graduates with intensive and comprehensive training in the retail industry. The program, which targets 50% of the positions for female candidates, is part of Carrefour’s commitment to promoting gender diversity and investing in local talent development. Carrefour has partnered with The University of Nairobi and Strathmore University in Kenya, offering a dynamic platform for graduates to learn from the best in the business.…