Former Standard Group CEO Marion Gathoga Mwangi has fully offloaded her stake in British American Tobacco Kenya (BAT Kenya).
According to BAT Kenya’s financial reports, Gathoga Mwangi held 671 shares in the company as of February 10, 2024.
However, by February 20, 2025, her name had been removed from the directors’ shareholding register, confirming that she no longer held any shares.
Although the exact timing of the sale within that year has not been disclosed, the information confirms that she withdrew the shares before her exit from Standard Group.
Also Read: Missing Millions: A Cross-Examination of BAT Kenya’s Tax Bill
The Ex-Standard CEO Still on the BAT Board
Despite disposing of her shares, Gathoga Mwangi continues to serve on BAT Kenya’s board of directors.
The company has not issued any statement regarding the sale or whether it was linked to any boardroom developments or governance matters.
Gathonga announced her exit from Standard in June 2025, citing personal matters.
Aside from her role at Standard Group, she is a long-serving director of The Palmhouse Foundation and serves on various boards, including BAT PLC and Kenya Association of Manufacturers (KAM) as Non-Executive Director.
Additionally, she is the Vice Chair of Women in Manufacturing (WIM) in Kenya and a member of Women Corporate Directors (WCD), Women on Boards Network (WoBN), and Institute of Directors of South Africa (IODSA).
Gathonga is a part-time Executive Director of Education of the Women in Leadership program (WILS) at Strathmore Business School (SBS).
Also Read: Standard Group CEO Marion Gathoga Mwangi Announces Exit
The BAT Tax Scandal
The University of Bath’s Tobacco Control Research Group, in collaboration with the Investigative Desk and Tax Justice Network Africa, reported that BAT Kenya underpaid $28 million (Ksh3.6 billion) in taxes.
However, a response letter from KRA over the matter, issued on February 19, 2025, acknowledged the report, noting that the authority has launched investigations into the allegations.
The commissioner assured that any evidence of tax evasion will be dealt with utmost urgency.
Meanwhile, BAT Kenya dismissed the allegation published in the report, explaining that it received a request from The Investigative Desk for comment on matters covered in the report in June 2024.
However, the questions in the inquest did not include the methodology used to analyze its financial data.
“BAT Kenya unequivocally and firmly rejects the allegations made, including those regarding the discrepancy between the Company’s published financial disclosures and data referred to in the report.
“As a publicly listed company, BAT Kenya publishes financial disclosures in its Annual Reports and audited Financial Statements in line with the applicable local regulations and international reporting standards,” said BAT Kenya in a statement dated February 18, 2025,” it noted.
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