Geza Ulole
JF-Expert Member
- Oct 31, 2009
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South Africa's Vodacom To Buy 35% Of Kenya's Safaricom From Parent Vodafone
Southern African telecoms giant Vodacom Group will buy a 34.94% stake in Kenyan operator Safaricom – known for its ground-breaking M-Pesa mobile money system – from mutual holding company Vodafone for ZAR34,6-billion (about $2,6-billion).
Calling Safaricom a "prized asset on the African continent," Vodacom now has a significant footprint in Kenya, where Safaricom has an estimated 71% of the mobile market and some 19-million M-Pesa users. M-Pesa is widely seen as the poster child of mobile innovation in Africa and the most innovative mobile money system in the world. An estimated 40% of Kenya's GDP passes through M-Pesa every day.
Vodafone, which owns 65% of South Africa-based Vodacom, will still own 5% of Safaricom, in which Kenya's government still owns 35%.
Announcing the transaction in a press statement, which is subject to regulatory and shareholder approvals, Vodacom Group Chief Executive Officer Shameel Joosub said: “This is an exciting occasion for Vodacom and a unique opportunity to diversify our revenue growth and profitability. Acquiring a strategic stake in Safaricom will provide our shareholders with access to a high growth, high margin, high cash generation business operating in a high growth market. In addition to producing mutually beneficial opportunities for growth, it will create further incremental value through the close cooperation between the two businesses, particularly in driving M-Pesa adoption across our operations.”
Describing M-Pesa as "an important driver of Kenyan economic growth" Joosub says "the proposed transaction will improve Vodacom Group’s presence in East Africa, jointly increasing the company’s growth in financial services customers to 32 million, making it a formidable player in financial services on the continent".
He adds: “We have negotiated what we believe is an attractive price for access to an additional 28.1-million customers and one of the most successful and innovative telecoms companies in Africa."
Vodacom’s stake in Safaricom proportionally equates to approximately 12.6% of the group’s reported service revenue as announced in its latest year-end results, the statement added.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/tobysha.../#230434142a63
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Southern African telecoms giant Vodacom Group will buy a 34.94% stake in Kenyan operator Safaricom – known for its ground-breaking M-Pesa mobile money system – from mutual holding company Vodafone for ZAR34,6-billion (about $2,6-billion).
Calling Safaricom a "prized asset on the African continent," Vodacom now has a significant footprint in Kenya, where Safaricom has an estimated 71% of the mobile market and some 19-million M-Pesa users. M-Pesa is widely seen as the poster child of mobile innovation in Africa and the most innovative mobile money system in the world. An estimated 40% of Kenya's GDP passes through M-Pesa every day.
Vodafone, which owns 65% of South Africa-based Vodacom, will still own 5% of Safaricom, in which Kenya's government still owns 35%.
Announcing the transaction in a press statement, which is subject to regulatory and shareholder approvals, Vodacom Group Chief Executive Officer Shameel Joosub said: “This is an exciting occasion for Vodacom and a unique opportunity to diversify our revenue growth and profitability. Acquiring a strategic stake in Safaricom will provide our shareholders with access to a high growth, high margin, high cash generation business operating in a high growth market. In addition to producing mutually beneficial opportunities for growth, it will create further incremental value through the close cooperation between the two businesses, particularly in driving M-Pesa adoption across our operations.”
Describing M-Pesa as "an important driver of Kenyan economic growth" Joosub says "the proposed transaction will improve Vodacom Group’s presence in East Africa, jointly increasing the company’s growth in financial services customers to 32 million, making it a formidable player in financial services on the continent".
He adds: “We have negotiated what we believe is an attractive price for access to an additional 28.1-million customers and one of the most successful and innovative telecoms companies in Africa."
Vodacom’s stake in Safaricom proportionally equates to approximately 12.6% of the group’s reported service revenue as announced in its latest year-end results, the statement added.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/tobysha.../#230434142a63
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