Ugandan tycoon Emmanuel Katongole’s CiplaQCIL set to sell majority stake to Africa Capitalworks

Cipla Quality Chemical Industries Limited (CiplaQCIL), a pharmaceutical manufacturing firm led by Ugandan pharmaceutical tycoon Emmanuel Katongole, has inked a share sale agreement with Mauritius-based firm Africa Capitalworks.

Under this agreement, Africa Capitalworks will acquire a 51.18-percent stake in CiplaQCIL.

The transaction represents a strategic investment aimed at unlocking growth opportunities, particularly in the areas of technology, innovation, and drug manufacturing.

The Mauritius-based investment firm is now seeking approval from the Capital Markets Authority.

The deal if approved will lead to a significant change in the company’s shareholding structure.

In light of this development, shareholders and the public are advised to exercise caution when trading shares.

While it is unclear whether the Ugandan pharmaceutical tycoon Emmanuel Katongole will be selling any of his stakes, it is certain that Africa Capitalworks will be acquiring a 51.05-percent stake in Cipla Quality Chemicals owned by Meditab Holdings, as well as 0.13 percent of Cipla European Union.

CiplaQCIL is a pharmaceutical manufacturing firm based in Luzira, a suburb of Kampala, Uganda’s capital city. The company makes triple-combination antiretroviral drugs such as Lumartem, an antimalarial drug, and Texavir and Zentair, generic Hepatitis-B medications.

Katongole, the founding CEO of CiplaQCIL, owns a 2.79-percent equity stake in the Uganda-based pharmaceutical company, which translates to 101,933,042 ordinary shares in the company.

In its latest financial statement for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2022, CiplaQCIL reported a profit of Ush24.05 billion ($6.28 million), a significant improvement from the Ush10.54-billion ($2.9 million) loss reported in the previous year’s financial statement.

The increase in earnings was the result of management’s efficient cost-cutting strategies, which resulted in a reversal of impairment allowance totaling Ush20.2 billion ($5.23 million), despite a six-percent decrease in revenue from Ush284.54 billion ($74.6 million) to Ush267.43 billion ($70 million).