Multinational companies holding major stakes in Nairobi bourse-listed firms are repatriating Sh42.2 billion to parent companies, reflecting the importance of the Kenyan units to conglomerates’ bottom lines.

Safaricom, BAT Kenya, and EABL and banks such as Absa Bank Kenya, Standard Chartered and Equity Group are among the companies that have raised their interim and final payouts this year.

Their parent firms will start receiving the billions of shillings from Tuesday, a boost to the multinationals who have also seen their shares gain at the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE).

The 11.7 percent rise in the dividend payouts to the foreign firms follows higher profits posted by their Kenyan units last year.

These improved returns have underlined the importance of these Kenyan subsidiaries to the bottom line of global giants such as Vodafone Plc, Standard Bank of South Africa, BAT Plc and Diageo Plc.

The multinational subsidiaries at the NSE have in recent years been among the most consistent dividend-paying firms, backed by strong fundamentals and mature business operations.

“The higher dividend payouts are attributable to strong bottom-line performance as well as quality organic growth experienced in the year, save for select banks such as Stanbic and Standard Chartered Kenya, though they managed to utilise their reserves to pay dividends,” said Melodie Ndanu, an analyst at Standard Investment Bank.

“Most also had healthy cash balances, enabling them to increase payout ratios without straining working capital or near term capex plans.”

The companies with large foreign ownership have emerged as some of the biggest dollar buyers during their dividend season for onward payment to their external shareholders.

This has previously stoked dollar shortages and rationing due to increased demand.

The market is currently enjoying ample dollar liquidity, meaning that its purchases for repatriation are unlikely to hurt the shilling by draining dollar availability in the market.

A stable exchange rate over the past year also means that the multinationals will not experience exchange-related gains or losses when sending dividends to the offshore owners.

For a foreign investor, a weakening shilling means that they get fewer dollars when converting their cash for repatriating dividends or the proceeds of a share sale out of the country. On the other hand, a stronger shilling yields more dollars upon conversion, resulting in an exchange gain on dividends.

Safaricom, whose financial year closes at the end of March, made an interim dividend payment of Sh0.85 per share on March 31. The company raised the interim payout by 55 percent from Sh0.55 per share in 2025.

Vodacom Group and Vodafone, which own a combined 40 percent stake or 16 billion shares in the company, earned Sh13.6 billion from the 2026 interim distribution, compared to Sh8.8 billion a year earlier.

Safaricom has been splitting its annual dividend into two payments since 2021, partly to reduce its impact on the forex market when buying dollars to pay foreign investors due to its large payout amount. It usually makes its interim payout in March and a final distribution at the end of August.

The dividend paid by Equity Group to investment fund Arise BV, which holds a 12.76 percent stake in the lender (481.58 million shares), is expected to jump to Sh2.77 billion from Sh2.05 billion.

The bank enhanced its full-year dividend to Sh5.75 per share from Sh4.25 previously when it released its 2025 financial results last month. The payment date is subject to approval, with its books closing on May 22 for the dividend.

BAT Kenya, which is 60 percent majority-owned by UK multinational British American Tobacco Plc, increased its final dividend per share to Sh60 in 2025 from Sh45 a year earlier, raising its distribution to the parent by a third to Sh3.6 billion, from Sh2.7 billion. The dividend will be paid out on June 12.

Diageo is also set to bank an enhanced payout of Sh2.06 billion on April 30 from its 65 percent stake in EABL, which in January announced an interim dividend of Sh4 per share for the half year to December 2025.

In the corresponding period last year, the British firm earned a dividend of Sh1.29 billion, after EABL set an interim dividend of Sh2.50 per share for the half year to December 2024.

Diageo is in the process of offloading its entire EABL stake and a 53.68 percent holding in spirits producer and importer UDV Kenya to Japanese beverage maker Asahi Holdings for a total consideration of $3 billion (Sh387 billion).

Absa Bank Kenya raised its final dividend per share for the year ended December 2025 to Sh1.85 from Sh1.55 in 2024, resulting in a rise in its payout to its South African parent Absa Group (68.5 percent stake) from Sh5.77 billion to Sh6.88 billion. The bank will be making the final dividend payment on May 19.

UK lender Standard Chartered Plc, which holds a 73.89 percent stake in the Kenyan subsidiary, is earning Sh6.42 billion in final dividend next month, which, however, represents a decline from Sh10.33 billion last year after it cut the final payout to Sh27 per share from Sh37 previously.

StanChart had earlier paid an unchanged interim dividend of Sh8 per share in August 2025 for the half year to June 2025.

South Africa’s Standard Bank, the majority owner of Stanbic Kenya with a 74.9 percent stake, will bank a lower final dividend of Sh5.49 billion, compared to Sh5.6 billion in the corresponding period last year. The payment date for the dividend is yet to be approved by shareholders.

Stanbic set its final dividend at Sh18.55 per share, adding to the interim dividend of Sh3.80 per share in September 2025 that took the total distribution for 2025 to Sh22.35 a share.

In 2024, the bank paid shareholders Sh20.74 per share, comprising a final dividend of Sh18.90 and an interim payout of Sh1.84 per share.

→ cmwaniki@ke.nationmedia.com

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