News

Story by NATION Reporter

A consortium led by Dyer & Blair Investment Bank will head the Government process of selling Safaricom shares to the public.

This is after they were announced as the winning Lead Transaction Advisers in the eagerly awaited sell of the mobile phone service provider’s shares.

They beat two other qualifying consortiums and turned tide on the zero bidders by a consortium led by Renaissance - the Russian-owned investment bank recently admitted to Nairobi Stock Exchange as brokers.

Dyer & Blair will partner with Morgan Stanley & Co International PLC, Faida Securities, Ashbhu Securities Limited and Dyer & Blair Investment Bank in a deal where they will be expecting a 5 cent cheque from Treasury in payment for their rendered services.

Seek approval

As the lead transaction advisers, they will be responsible for securing all the approval needed for listing on behalf of the Government, compiling the prospectus, advising on the pricing and devising the sale timetable.

The victory hands Dyer & Blair Investment Bank an exclusive handling of all Government sale of shares to the public.

This comes after they bagged the KenGen Initial Public Offering, the secondary sale of Mumias Sugar Company shares both concluded last year, and the recently concluded initial sale of Kenya Re shares.

First position

They took the first position in technical evaluation scoring 91.3 per cent against their closest rival, SRK consortium led by Renaissance, which scored 89.6 per cent.

In legal services, a consortium led by Muriu Mugai with a low financial bid of Sh2.4 million, turned tables on the technical evaluation leaders Hamilton, Harrison & Mathews to bag the legal advisory docket. They had scored 90.2 per cent but placed a financial bid of Sh12 million while Muriu Mugai scored 75.5 per cent - half a point past the cut line (75 per cent), winning on low financial bid.

The winning formula weighs the two, technical evaluation and financial bid, on a 70:30 scale. Receiving banks a consortium fronted by Citi, which includes Equity Bank and Kenya Post Office Saving Bank, also won on the financial bid coming second on technical evaluation after KCB consortium which scored 85.2 per cent.

Citi’s consortium had scored 83.1 per cent bidding Sh94 million while KCB had offered to charge Sh179 million. In advertising the sole qualifier Red Sky, a subsidiary of ScanGroup, won at a cost of Sh2 million while in public relations services, Gina Din Communications scoring 81 per cent, won at a cost of Sh4.3 million.