Kenya: The UK-based development financier CDC is set to acquire a 40% stake in ARM Cement, after the firm injected US$140m into the family-owned Kenyan cement manufacturer.
The CDC funds will allow ARM to retire expensive short-term loans that have been weighing down the company’s earnings. The CDC is owned by the UK’s Department for International Development.
“We are proud to back a founder-led frontrunner in East African manufacturing,” said Mark Pay, CDC’s managing director for equity investments. “This investment will strengthen a company (that is) making a difference to the local economy, bringing jobs and lower-cost raw materials to a region traditionally dependent on imports.”