Hello, I’m Annah. Welcome to today’s edition of The Business Roundup. In this issue, we look at the government’s approval for the sale of Riverside towers, a drop in global oil prices, among other top business stories.
The Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) has unconditionally approved the proposed acquisition of 100% of the issued share capital of Riverside Towers Limited by Batian Income Properties LLP.
In a statement issued on October 9, 2025, the Authority stated that the transaction is unlikely to negatively impact competition in Nairobi County’s real estate and rental office space market or raise any public interest concerns.
“The transaction is unlikely to negatively impact competition in the market for real estate, rental office spaces segment in Nairobi County, nor elicit negative public interest concerns,” CAK stated.
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Govt Greenlights Sale of Riverside Towers
Batian Income Properties LLP, the acquiring entity, is a Kenya-based real estate fund backed by a diverse group of investors involved in various projects across Nairobi and Machakos counties, including educational developments.
Riverside Towers Limited, the target company, is the developer and manager of The Cube, a commercial office complex located in Westlands, Nairobi.
The acquisition entails Batian purchasing all the issued shares of Riverside Towers.
CAK noted that the transaction would enable the current shareholders to redirect their investments while supporting Riverside Towers’ operational expansion, which had been limited by constrained shareholder capital.
According to CAK’s analysis, Riverside Towers holds approximately 6 percent of the commercial property market in Nairobi, while Batian Income Properties accounts for about 2 percent.
Post-merger, the combined market share will stand at 8 percent—a level deemed too low to raise competition concerns.
Oil Prices Fall
In other news, global oil prices have dropped ahead of the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA)’s October–November fuel price review.
Oil prices fell by more than $2 per barrel, or about 4%, on Friday, October 10, after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened a “massive increase” in tariffs on Chinese goods.
The price decline was further compounded by persistent bearish sentiment driven by rising global oil supply, including increased output from both OPEC+ and non-OPEC producers.
Additionally, easing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East — particularly progress toward a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza — removed a key risk premium from oil prices, further contributing to the downward momentum.
Brent crude futures settled at $62.73 per barrel, down $2.49 or 3.82%, marking the lowest level since May 5.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude closed at $58.90 per barrel, down $2.61 or 4.24%, the lowest since early May.
In its Weekly Bulletin released on October 9, the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) noted that international oil prices remained relatively steady, as investors weighed a smaller-than-expected production increase by OPEC+ for November 2025 — a move that helped temper concerns about a supply glut.
OPEC’s September crude production rose by +400,000 bpd to 29.05 million bpd, the highest in 2.5 years.
“Oil prices have moderated, mainly reflecting increased production by the OPEC+ and non-OPEC producers, and reduced global demand. The OPEC+ announced on October 5, 2025, that it will raise output by 137,000 bpd in November 2025,” CBK stated.
According to CBK, the main risks to oil prices relate to higher tariffs, and any supply disruptions from escalation of geopolitical tensions, particularly the conflict in the Middle East and war in Ukraine.
Kenya Seeks Advisors for Privatization of Kenya Pipeline
The government has formally kicked off the process to privatise the Kenya Pipeline Company (KPC) through an initial public offering (IPO) at the Nairobi Securities Exchange.
In a public notice published on Thursday, October 9, the Privatization Commission invited bids from qualified firms to provide transaction advisory services for the planned IPO, following Parliament’s approval earlier in the month.
The commission announced it is seeking a team of advisors led by a lead transaction advisor to coordinate and execute the Kenya Pipeline Corporation IPO process.
The advisory roles, divided into eight categories, include lead transaction advisory, stockbroking, accounting, legal, advertising, public relations, receiving bank, and registrar services.
Currently, KPC is fully owned by the Government of Kenya, with 99.9% held by the National Treasury and 0.1% by the Ministry of Energy and Petroleum.
ALSO BIG THIS WEEK
- Safaricom has dismissed 113 employees during the financial year ending March 2024, representing approximately 2 percent of its total workforce.
- Kisii County Public Service Board has announced 498 vacancies in 2 different departments.
- The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) is inviting applications from qualified teachers to fill 2,629 vacancies as facilitators and trainers for Junior School teachers in Integrated Science, Mathematics, and English.
- KLM Royal Dutch Airlines and Kenya Airways (KQ) convened a high-level executive roundtable on October 8 in Nairobi, culminating in a landmark policy breakthrough aimed at accelerating the adoption of alternative aviation fuel (SAF) across Africa
- Telecommunications company Safaricom has unveiled Kenya’s first Video Ring Back Tone (VRBT) service in partnership with Huawei. Dubbed VybCall, the VRBT service is innovated off the Skiza service, which was launched nearly 20 years ago.
- The Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) has appointed Nancy Noreh Angano as a Non-Executive Director, representing trading participants on the bourse’s Board.
- EACC has confirmed the recovery of KSh 56 million from the sale of four properties belonging to former Migori Governor Okoth Obado.
- The COMESA Competition Commission (CCC) has fined Kenya Airways and Zambia Airways for violating passenger rights.
- The High Court has quashed a ruling that required Airtel Kenya Networks Limited to pay Ksh6.5 million in damages to media personality Willis Raburu over alleged infringement of the trademark “BAZU.”
Currency Trends
The Kenya shilling remained stable against major international and regional currencies during the week ending October 9, 2025.
It exchanged at Ksh 129.24 per USD on October 9, unchanged from the rate on October 2.
Kenya’s apex bank, CBK, quoted the shilling at Ksh 129.2398 on Saturday, October 11.
Against other major currencies, the shilling traded at:
- Sterling Pound – Ksh173.5174
- Euro – Ksh150.3511
- South African Rand – 7.5334
- Japanese Yen (100 units) – Ksh84.7004
Against regional currencies, the shilling exchanged at:
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- Ugandan Shilling – Ksh26.5785
- Tanzanian Shilling – Ksh18.9570
- Rwandan Franc – Ksh11. 2348
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