South Africa’s Vodacom, led by Joosub, seeks control of Safaricom

Vodacom Group, the Johannesburg-based telecommunications giant led by South African executive Shameel Joosub is set to take a controlling stake in Kenya’s Safaricom Plc in a deal worth about $2.4 billion. 

The company has agreed to buy a 15 percent stake from the Kenyan government and an additional 5 percent from Vodafone International Holdings BV. The combined purchase is priced at $2.1 billion, strengthening its position in one of Africa’s most valuable mobile operators. 

As part of the transaction, Vodacom will also make an upfront payment of R5.3 billion ($312 million) to secure dividend rights that previously flowed to the Kenyan state. The arrangement follows weeks of discussions between Vodacom and Kenyan officials about the future of Safaricom’s shareholding.

Expanding influence in East Africa 

If approved, the purchase will lift Vodacom’s stake in Safaricom to 54.9 percent. Vodacom plans to fund the acquisition through loans from Vodafone and a Kenyan-shilling facility backed by the group. The company says the deal will deepen its footprint in mobile money and digital financial services, areas where Safaricom’s M-Pesa platform has long set the pace in the region. 

Safaricom, valued at roughly Ksh 1.196 trillion ($9.25 billion), holds close to 60 percent of Kenya’s mobile market. It remains one of the country’s most profitable companies. Revenue for the six months to September rose 11.1 percent to Ksh199.9 billion ($1.5 billion), driven by data use, mobile payments and enterprise services.

The deal will go through a lengthy approval process. Kenyan authorities—including the Cabinet, National Assembly, Capital Markets Authority, Communications Authority, Central Bank, the COMESA Competition Commission and the East African Community Competition Authority—must all sign off before the transfer is finalized.

Vodacom’s broader push

Vodacom serves more than 220 million customers across Africa, with major operations in Tanzania, Mozambique, Lesotho and the Democratic Republic of Congo. The group has reported steady earnings despite South Africa’s power shortages and infrastructure strains. Revenue for the six months ending Sept. 30, 2025, rose 10.9 percent to R81.58 billion ($4.8 billion) from R73.54 billion ($4.32 billion) a year earlier. 

Joosub, who holds a small personal stake in the company valued at more than $14 million, has been credited with steering Vodacom through a challenging economic period while pushing expansion and new partnerships. Last month, Vodacom signed an agreement with Elon Musk’s Starlink to bring high-speed broadband to businesses across the continent.