Vodafone’s African subsidiary, Vodacom, to acquire 20% of Safaricom, taking its stake to 55%
15% will be acquired from the Government of Kenya and 5% from Vodafone
Vodafone Group’s African subsidiary, Vodacom Group Ltd (“Vodacom”) has agreed to acquire an effective 20% of the issued share capital in Safaricom Plc (“Safaricom”), Kenya’s leading telecoms operator (the “Acquisition”).
Vodacom will acquire 15% from the Government of Kenya (the “GOK”) for a cash consideration of €1.36 billion1 (KES 204 billion2), and 5% from Vodafone3 for a cash consideration of €0.45 billion (KES 68 billion).
Following completion of the Acquisition, Safaricom will be owned by Vodacom (55%), the GOK (20%) and public investors4 (25%) and will be consolidated by both Vodacom and Vodafone.
Transaction rationale
The Acquisition provides both Vodafone and Vodacom with an opportunity to gain controlling ownership of one of Africa’s most successful telecoms and financial services businesses.
Listed on the Nairobi Securities Exchange, Safaricom is Kenya’s largest telecoms company, with a market capitalisation of €7.7 billion. Safaricom also owns a scaled tower and spectrum portfolio in Kenya, as well as M-Pesa – a world-leading fintech business – with over 100 million daily transactions and 38 million M-Pesa customers in Kenya. Safaricom also owns a majority shareholding in Safaricom Ethiopia. In the six months to 30 September 2025, Safaricom’s service revenue in Kenya was up 9.3% over the corresponding period last year, underpinned by strong M-Pesa revenue growth of 14%.
Margherita Della Valle, Vodafone Group CEO, said: “In line with our focus on growth, this is an opportunity to gain a controlling shareholding in a highly successful African business in an attractive market. We have enjoyed a successful partnership with Safaricom since 2000, including the co-development of M-Pesa, which has brought wide-ranging financial inclusion to millions of customers.”
Completion timetable
Completion of the Acquisition is subject to a number of conditions, including, but not limited to, regulatory approvals in Kenya, South Africa and Ethiopia.
The Acquisition is expected to close in the first quarter of the 2026 calendar year.
Full transaction details are contained in Vodacom’s announcement, available here: https://www.vodacom.com/share-price-and-sens.php
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