Uganda opens its market to Dangote's 4bn shares

Another African country has opened its market to Dangote Petroleum Refinery’s $1.6bn initial public offering (IPO), expanding access to the landmark Nigerian share sale beyond its home market. Uganda’s Capital Markets Authority has approved investors in the East African country to participate in the IPO, according to Business Insider Africa. Reuters reports that the approval covers the offer of securities under the IPO and followed an application submitted on behalf of the refinery by Stanbic IBTC Capital. However, access is limited to professional and high-net-worth investors. The move comes as Dangote seeks to raise about ₦2.15trn ($1.6bn) through the sale of 4.1bn shares. Nigeria’s Securities and Exchange Commission in September, had approved the offering, making it Africa’s largest share sale to date. The proceeds are expected to help fund the refinery’s planned expansion to 1.4m barrels per day. The IPO was initially structured as a Nigerian offer, while Dangote’s advisers held discussions with several African markets, including Kenya, SA, Egypt, Ghana and Rwanda, over ways to facilitate participation by investors outside Nigeria. That position has since begun to change. Kenya became the first additional market to formally approve an access route. The approval also enables licensed Kenyan firms working with Nigerian counterparts to facilitate participation. Uganda has now followed, although its approval is narrower because participation is limited to professional and high-net-worth investors. The broader regional push is still developing.