NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Wednesday, October 8, 2014

Kenya’s Wananchi Group, which owns the Zuku pay-TV and fibre brands, has raised US$130 million in funding to expand in East and Southern Africa.

The investment was co-led by existing Wananchi shareholders Altice SA, Liberty Global, Emerging Capital Partners (“ECP”) and ATMT alongside new investors Helios Investment Partners.

“The new capital investment will be used to consolidate the group’s market leadership in East Africa and to extend our services across East and Southern Africa,” said Wananchi Group vice chairman Richard Bell.

“We will continue the deployment of fibre to the home networks in more cities in East Africa and extend our business services networks and product offerings across a wide variety of geographies and market segments. With our stronger balance sheet we will also invest in exciting new technologies and service platforms to improve the quality of our products and deliver a superior experience for our customers.”

Ali Mufuruki, chairman of the board of Wananchi, said: “This is a very exciting time for Wananchi. We have grown tremendously over the six years since we founded the business. The significant size of this investment round is further proof that the markets have confidence in our business strategy and our performance to date. There is no better time than now to invest in African markets and the transformation of the African consumer experience, of which Wananchi is at the forefront in East Africa.”