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The Kenyan billionaire Shah family has acquired Nairobi Business Park through their investment vehicle, MTZ Holdings, marking their latest major investment in Kenya, East Africa’s largest economy.
Following approval from the Competition Authority of Kenya, the Shah family and other shareholders of MTZ Holdings completed the acquisition of the property complex along Nairobi’s Ngong Road from NBP Holdings Limited (CAK).
However, the transaction’s value was not disclosed, but based on previous transactions, it is expected to have closed above the Ksh2-billion ($16.2 million) mark.
The business park, which ranks perfectly as a grade “A” office complex, was completed at the end of 2002 and sits on a 16-acre plot purchased from the Jockey Club of Kenya by Actis, a leading private equity firm, to develop the commercial block.
Actis, the complex’s developer, sold the property to NBP Holdings Limited for an undisclosed sum in February 2015. The property complex was later put up for sale two and a half years later for Ksh2.6 billion ($21 million).
The Shah family’s acquisition of the property expands the family’s investment portfolio, which already includes stakes in companies such as I&M Group.
Suresh Bhagwanji Shah and other founding members established I&M Group in 1974. Since then, it has evolved into a non-operating holding company of I&M Bank Limited, a leading financial services group with active operations in Kenya, Tanzania, and Rwanda, as well as a joint venture in Mauritius.
Shah, one of Kenya’s wealthiest businessmen, owns a majority stake in MTZ, a newly incorporated entity that has taken over ownership of the property complex. MTZ owns 57.8 percent of I&M, which has a market value of about Ksh16.2 billion ($131.2 million).
