Mobius Motors Kenya Ltd, Kenya’s pioneering local car manufacturing company, has accepted a bid to sell its shares to a private buyer two weeks after announcing that it was closing down operations in Kenya.
In a notice on Thursday, August 15, Mobius Director Nicolas Guibert announced that Mobius and the buyer are working to ensure the deal is sealed in a month.
“On 14-Aug-2024, Mobius Motors has accepted a bid for the acquisition of 100% of its shares by an undisclosed buyer. Both parties are looking to close the transaction within 30 days,” read part of the notice by Guibert.
The Director also announced the postponement of the creditors meeting scheduled for August 15 to a later date.
“As such, notice is hereby given that the meeting of the creditors originally scheduled to 15-Aug-2024 at 9AM at Mobius Factory (Sammer Africa, Mombasa/ Enterprise Road Junction, Nairobi) has been postponed to a date that will be communicated in due course,” he noted.
On August 5, Mobius announced that it was closing business operations in Kenya through liquidation.
In a statement, the Company said it was entering into a voluntary liquidation process aimed at winding up its activities and appointed KVSK Sastry as the liquidator in charge of overseeing the process.
“At a meeting of the Shareholders held on 5-Aug-2024, it was Resolved to place the Company under Liquidation as per Section 393(1) (b) of the Insolvency Act and to appoint KVSK Sastry as the Liquidator to wind-up the Company,” read the statement.
Also Read: Govt Intervenes After Mobius Motors Announced Plans to Close Business in Kenya
Mobius Motors Financial Problems
British businessman Joel Jackson founded Mobius Motors in 2011 to manufacture cars tailored to the needs of the African market.
In 2018, the KRA issued Mobius a tax demand of Sh85.74 million based on assessments of capital received from the parent company during the period from January 2014 to December 2016.
The Company sought court protection from the Ksh73 million tax demand by KRA in 2021.
Also Read: Layoffs Loom as Mobius Motors Shuts Down Business Operations
Mobius filed an application arguing that it would suffer significant financial loss if the tax regime was not suspended.
The company provided its audited financial reports to the court to prove its financial vulnerability.
The 2019 end-of-year report revealed that the company had a liability of Ksh434.3 million and a shareholders’ deficit of Ksh204.8 million.
By August 2020, this position had worsened as the company had accumulated a liability of Ksh649.2 million and a shareholders’ deficit of Ksh389.1 million.
After closely reviewing the submitted documents, the High Court granted a stay of execution, allowing Mobius to provide a bank guarantee of Ksh40 million.
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