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Kenyan executive and multimillionaire businessman James Mwangi has seen the market value of his stake slump by Ksh415.58 million ($3.67 million) in the past seven days, as shares in the Kenya-based lender Equity Group fell by more than six percent.
Mwangi, who is the CEO and managing director of Equity Group Holdings, the largest financial services group in Kenya, owns a 3.38-percent stake in the bank.
As of press time, Jan. 12, shares in the Kenya-based lender were trading at Ksh50 ($0.4413), 3.85-percent higher than their opening price on the Nairobi Stock Exchange this morning.
At the current price level, Mwangi’s 3.38-percent stake is worth at least $56 million, while the lender’s market capitalization is valued at Ksh196 billion, making it the second-most capitalized stock on the local bourse behind Safaricom.
Since Jan. 4, shares in the group have fallen from a price of Ksh53.25 ($0.47) to Ksh50 ($0.4413) at the time of drafting this report. This translates to a total 6.1-percent loss for shareholders.
As a result of the price slump, the market value of Mwangi’s stake has fallen from over Ksh6.8 billion ($60.07 million) one week ago to Ksh6.4 billion ($56.4 million) on Jan. 12.
The price movement led to a Ksh415.58-million ($3.67 million) decline in the market value of his stake between Jan. 4 and 12.
Mwangi is on course to become one of the longest-serving executives in the country after he disclosed that he will retire as CEO of the Nairobi-based group in 2032.
His decision to remain at the group’s helm aligns with the 70-year age limit set by the Kenya Capital Markets Authority (CMA) for executives, as Mwangi will celebrate his 60th birthday this year.
In 2021, the multimillionaire businessman recorded an $18.3-million surge in the valuation of his 3.38-percent stake in Equity Group Holdings thanks to a 44-percent surge in the lender’s shares for the year.
The surge in his stake is classified as an unrealized gain, as he did not sell his stake during the year. However, the leading executive received a total salary package of Ksh278.5 million ($2.47 million) from the financial services group in 2020.
