Corporate News
From left: Chris Kirubi, Issa Timamy, Musalia Mudavadi and Eddy Njoroge.
Insurance industry’s top investors have earned more than Sh10 billion
in the wake of a recent wave of big-ticket acquisitions that have
stirred Kenya’s usually quiet underwriting sector. PHOTOS | FILE |
NATION MEDIA GROUP
By VICTOR JUMA, vjuma@ke.nationmedia.com
In Summary
- Top owners emerge as the biggest winners in a wave of acquisitions of local underwriters.
Insurance industry’s top investors have earned more
than Sh10 billion in the wake of a recent wave of big-ticket
acquisitions that have stirred Kenya’s usually quiet underwriting
sector.
Former Vice-President Musalia Mudavadi, businessman Chris Kirubi, former KenGen chief executive Eddy Njoroge, the family of the late John Michuki, successors of the late Godfrey Karuri, and the family of Inderjit Talwar make the list of top beneficiaries who earned hundreds of millions from the recent takeovers.
The investors have sold their interests in the
insurance companies to local and international buyers in a deal-making
spree that is driven by growth opportunities in the domestic
underwriting business as the Kenyan economy expands.
Mr Mudavadi, who alongside other investors is
selling a combined 63.3 per cent stake in First Assurance to
Johannesburg-based Barclays Africa for Sh2.2 billion, is the latest
beneficiary of the insurance industry windfall.
Mr Mudavadi has been the major shareholder of the
general insurance firm but it was not immediately clear whether he sold
his entire interest or retained a minority stake after the acquisition.
Lamu Governor Issa Timamy, who is a director of First Assurance, is also said to have an interest in the company.
Continuing minority shareholders are expected to
benefit from an additional Sh700 million that Barclays is investing in
First Assurance to grow the business. The money is part of the total
Sh2.9 billion that Barclays is paying for the deal.
Mr Njoroge is part of a group of individual
investors, including Sam Kimani, who sold a combined 99 per cent stake
in Real Insurance to investment group Britam last year for Sh1.3 billion.
The deal comprised Sh825.3 million in cash and 46.9 million units of Britam stock worth Sh550.21 million.
The cash-and-stock transaction has seen the
individuals book an extra Sh423 million in the form of capital gains on
the Britam stock that has left Mr Kimani as the single-largest
beneficiary going by the 20 per cent stake he held in Real before the
acquisition.
Meanwhile, Pan Africa Holdings’
Sh561 million acquisition of a 51 per cent stake in Gateway Insurance
left Mr Karuri’s family as the top beneficiaries of the transaction.
The Karuris owned 53.7 per cent stake in the
company, which Pan Africa bought to re-enter the general insurance
market it had exited in 2011 to focus on underwriting life policies.
The Karuris sold part of their stake in the acquisition, retaining a significant minority interest in Gateway.
No comments :
Post a Comment