Safaricom the dominant player in the Kenyan mobile phone industry has finally got the green light to proceed with what will be Kenya’s largest Initial Public Offer (IPO). Safaricom’s existing shareholders are the Kenyan Government (60%) and the UK Company Vodafone plc (35%).

The privatisation is being undertaken as part of the Privatisation Act 2005 which was enacted to bring greater transparency to the sale of Kenyan public assets. Kenyan oppositions parties had challenged the privatisation on the basis that procedures laid out in the Privatisation Act had not been properly followed and sought a court action to stop it.

In Nairobi’s High Court on Friday Justice Joseph Nyamu dismissed case, clearing the way for the government to sell 25% of Safaricom to the public. Irregularities with the Privatisation act is not the only controversy dogging the sale of Safaricom. A Guernsey registered company Mobitelea Ventures is said to own 5% of the company and there is widespread speculation as to the ownership of this firm.

The sale is expected to earn between 30-40Bn Kenyan Schillings (US$450m – US$600m). Once listed on the Nairobi Stock Exchange (NSE) the company will become Kenya’s largest listed company at over KSh 120 Billion, eclipsing East African Breweries Ltd. (Ksh 114 Billion), Barclays Bank Ltd. (Ksh 98 Billion) and Bamburi Cement Ltd (Ksh 71 Billion) currently Kenya’s three largest public quoted companies.