Shoprite Finally Sold to Nigerian Company owned by Billionaire Tayo Amusan

Africa’s biggest retail chain, Shoprite, has concluded arrangements that would lead to its final exit from Nigeria, an exclusive report by Reuters stated on Wednesday, April 15.

A Nigerian real estate group, Persianas, owned by Nigerian billionaire, Tayo Amusan, is said to have won the bidding process for the takeover of the retail chain. The company is expected to continue the operations of Shoprite outlets in Nigeria.

Business Elites Africa had reported in August 2020 (see report below) that Amusan was bidding to buy Shoprite and he was the investor preferred by the retail company. Some of the properties that house Shoprite outlets in Nigeria are owned by Amusan, including the palms shopping mall in Lagos. He also owns malls in Enugu, Kwara, Ota and Ibadan – all in Nigeria.

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The Reuters report cited banking sources to have confirmed that Persianas is currently arranging debt with FBNQuest, an asset management firm, to finalise the buyout of Shoprite. A private equity fund management firm, MBO Capital and KPMG are said to be Persianas’ advisors on the deal.

According to another report by Bloomberg, Shoprite owners put the company’s valuation at N30 billion. However, the final deal between Shoprite and Persianas was not disclosed as at the time of filing this report.

Shoprite had announced in August 2020 that it would wind down its operations in Nigeria due to unfavourable market conditions.

“The Board has decided to initiate a formal process to consider the potential sale of all, or a majority stake, in Retail Supermarkets Nigeria Limited, a subsidiary of Shoprite International Limited. As such, RSNL may be classified as a discontinued operation when Shoprite reports its results for the year,” the company had said in a statement released last year.

Penultimate week, the company released its financial report for December 2020 operations in which it hinted that the sale of its Nigeria subsidiary was near completion.