Centum Real Estate Limited, a subsidiary of the Nairobi Securities Exchange-listed Centum Investment Company raised KSh3 billion from its corporate bond. The bond raised 75% of its targeted KSh 4 billion despite the prevailing difficult economic environment and the bearish corporate bond market. The funds will help to finance its housing developments. The three-year bond has a maturity date set on December 16, 2023. “Investors are now regaining confidence in the Corporate Bond market after the negative experience in 2019,” said Kabaki Wamwea, the CEO of Private Wealth Capital, the Lead Arrangers of the Centum Real Estate Bond. The subsidiary…
Author: Khusoko
Khusoko
Khusoko provides market insights into Africa's business investment as well as global trends that impact East African businesses.
Mobile data traffic in sub-Saharan Africa is estimated to grow by almost 6.5 times the current figures according to Ericsson Mobility Report. The November 2020 edition report reveals that total traffic will increase from 0.87EB per month in 2020 to 5.6EB by 2026. It further discloses that the average traffic per smartphone is expected to reach 8.9GB over the forecast period. As demand for capacity and coverage of cellular networks continues to grow, service providers are expected to continue investing in their networks to cater for this uptake and meet evolving consumer requirements. In Sub-Saharan Africa, mobile subscriptions will continue…
When in 1995 Flora Mutahi decided to diversify from her free-flowing salt business and venture into tea blending and packaging by setting up Melvin’s Teas, she’s getting into uncharted territory. To begin with, she had no prior experience in running a business. She had no capital and no savings to talk of. And her parents were sceptical and unwilling to advance her any money for her venture as they believed that “girls get married, not set up businesses.” Not only was she getting into an industry dominated by cartels but the tea sub-sector was also controlled by men. But even…
Kenya’s SHK Consulting founder, Shreya Karia, received an Africa’s Woman Leaders award in a virtual ceremony, the agency said. Shreya Karia, a leading brand strategist said the award “…comes at a time when 2020 has been a year of crisis and has forced us to define what good leadership requires to navigate this uncertainty meaningfully. For my part, I hope that I can continue to inspire and support the aspirations of younger women to take up senior roles and further drive a positive agenda for growth in the next generation.” Africa’s Woman Leaders Awards is an initiative of the World…
The COVID-19 vaccine candidate (KBP-COVID-19; NCT04473690) will become one of a number of potential vaccines to have progressed beyond pre-clinical testing. The study is designed to enrol a total of 180 healthy volunteers who will be divided into two age cohorts, age 18-49 and age 50-70. Each group will then be subdivided into low and high dose treatment groups (N~45) and randomized 2:1 to receive either the low dose (15 μg KBP-COVID-19 vaccine + 0.5 mg adjuvant) or placebo, or high dose (45 μg KBP-COVID-19 vaccine + 0.5 mg adjuvant) or placebo. Results from the study are expected mid-2021 and,…
Amidst calls for social distancing and avoiding the use of cash owing to curb the spread of Covid-19, the Government has moved to charge Kenyans for opting for safer online shopping; a most counter-productive policy. January 2021, the Kenya Revenue Authority will start levying a digital services tax. This will apply to all online platforms where buyers and sellers interact. 1.5 per cent will apply to the gross value of the purchase. So, for instance, if you buy anything on Jumia, Amazon, or take a ride in a Littlecab, you will on top of your bill, pay an extra 1.5…