Kenya’s Nakumatt to sell $75m stake to fund
The deal is part of the supermarket chain’s plan to overhaul its balance sheet and restructure a $75m debt tranche owed to four local banks
Nairobi — Privately owned Nakumatt, Kenya’s biggest supermarket chain by sales, has agreed to sell a 25% stake to a foreign fund for $75m, as part of an effort to bolster its balance sheet and pay off debts, its managing director said on Wednesday. Nakumatt, which started with a single shop in Nairobi in 1992, operates 68 outlets in Kenya and neighbouring Rwanda, Uganda and Tanzania. The growing economies of East Africa have drawn in foreign retailers including Bostwana’s Choppies, SA’s Game Stores and French retailer Carrefour, through its Dubai-based franchisee Majid al-Futtaim. "We are already at final stages with the investor. We are just waiting for the money to come," Atul Shah said, without naming the fund involved. The deal is part of the chain’s plan to overhaul its balance sheet and restructure a $75m debt tranche owed to four local banks, Shah said. Expansion and other investments have pushed its debt up overall to $150m. "Nakumatt is going through some financial stress. ...
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