Company type | Public Limited Company |
---|---|
KN: CTUM USE:CENT | |
Industry | Investments |
Founded | 1967 |
Headquarters | Nairobi, Kenya |
Key people | [2] |
Products | Private Equity, Real Estate Development, Agribusiness, Banking, Power Generation, etc |
Revenue | ![]() |
Total assets | US$372.13 million (KES:48.08 billion) (March 2024) [3] |
Number of employees | 30 (2024) |
Website | www |
Centum Investment Company Plc, commonly known as Centum is a public East African investment company. It operates as an affiliate of the Kenyan government-owned Industrial and Commercial Development Corporation (ICDC).
Centum is a publicly owned investment company with headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya. Its shares are listed on the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE), where they trade under the symbol CTUM. [4] [5] The company shares are also cross-listed on the Uganda Securities Exchange (USE), where they trade under the symbol "CENT". [6] Centum is an investment channel providing investors access to a portfolio of inaccessible, quality, diversified investments.
Centum's mission is to create real, tangible wealth by providing the channel through which investors access and build extraordinary enterprises in Africa. As of March 2024 Centum's total assets were KSh 48,083,000,000 (US$371,230,000) with shareholder's equity of KSh41,042,000,000 (US$316,927,000). [3]
ICDC was founded in 1954 as a government parastatal, whose primary objective was to provide a vehicle for Kenyans to invest in the economy of newly independent Kenya by investing in Kenyan companies. In 1967, ICDC formed the subsidiary ICDC Investment Company Limited, whose shares were listed on the NSE.
In 1998, with the Government of Kenya having sold some of its majority shareholding, ICDC Investment Company adopted a new management structure, handing over day-to-day management to an independent professional managerial team, supervised by an independent board of directors elected by the shareholders.
In 2008, the shareholders changed the name of the company to Centum Investment Company Limited. [7] The shares of Centum Investment Company Limited have been publicly traded on the NSE since 1967 and on the USE since 10 February 2011. [8] Over time, Centum's strategy has evolved in line with the company's growth with Centum currently in its 2014 – 2019 strategic period dubbed "Centum 3.0". [9] Under Centum 3.0, the company maintains focus through 4 distinct business lines namely Real Estate, Private Equity, Development and Marketable Securities. [10]
Centum's investments are organised into four key verticals:
This division is involved in real estate development in Kenya [11] and Uganda, [12] with an eye to expanding into other countries in the African Great Lakes region. [13] These include: [14]
Centum Real Estate's portfolio comprises Two Rivers Duplexes, The Loft, Riverbank, Cascadia Apartments, 26 Mzizi Court Apartments and 265 Elmer One Apartments. The company was recently recognized as a super brand [15] and has won global accolades [16] recognizing it as the top fastest growing company to watch in 2024.
Vipingo Development offers a diverse range of investment opportunities. These include residential homes, fully serviced residential and industrial plots, as well as enticing prospects in commercial, hospitality and institutional sectors. The development features key urban infrastructure, including a 3 million litre capacity per day sea water desalination plant and an on-site power substation. Vipingo Development's portfolio comprises Awali Estate Phases 1 and 2, 1255 Palm Ridge Phases 1 and 2 and Kingswood Park Vipingo homes.
On 5 December 2024, Vipingo land was granted a permit to operate as a Special Economic Zone [19]
Pearl Marina's portfolio comprises Bellavista Apartments, Mirabella Residences, Springfield Apartments, La Perla Bungalows, Riviera Residence and Kingswood Park.
Centum Capital Partners (CCAP) is a wholly owned, independently managed subsidiary of Centum and a private equity fund manager and currently manages Centum’s private equity assets with an additional mandate to manage any new private equity funds and third-party capital alongside Centum’s own capital.
This division acquires equity positions in either publicly or non-publicly traded companies, mainly in the African Great Lakes region, but increasingly in other parts of the continent as well. [20] Investments under this segment include the publishing, financial services and utilities businesses. Per its March 2024 annual report, these included: [21]
Products and services by Longhorn Publishers include, [23] Longhorn Publishers, [24] and Longhorn Language Services.
The Marketable Securities Portfolio comprises investments in securities and fixed income instruments managed by Nabo Capital. Nabo Capital Limited (Nabo) is entrusted by Centum Investment Company PLC (Centum) with a dual mandate of capital preservation and delivering asymmetric risk adjusted returns on its Marketable Securities Portfolio (MSP) while maintaining operational liquidity. According to the FY24 Performance Review, The portfolio generated solid mean returns of 13.0% despite significant macroeconomic challenges. The portfolio outperformed the local Kenyan index (NSE), the Pan-African index (MSCI) and the Bloomberg Africa Bond Index by 5.0%, 19.9% and 23.5%, respectively [28]
Nabo Capital was named Best Asset Manager Africa 2025 by the Global Business & Finance Magazine [29]
This represents investments that are still under development. As of March 2024 [update] the development portfolio consists of
TRIFIC is a member of the prestigious World Alliance of International Financial Centers [30]