This archive report was first published on 4 September 2019.
On September 4, 2019, the Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) allayed fears over the takeover of De La Rue Kenya Limited by HID Corporation Ltd.
CAK clarified that the subsidiary being sold, De La Rue Kenya Limited, focuses on printing a wide range of security documents such as debit and credit cards and electronic government identity solutions (passports and ID cards).
However, the unit that prints currency, De La Rue Kenya EPZ Limited (DLR), is a joint venture between De La Rue PLC of the UK and the National Treasury (Kenya) and will not be affected by the takeover.
The National Treasury holds a 40 per cent stake in DLR while De La Rue PLC holds the remaining 60 per cent.
CAK stated that the approval of the proposed acquisition was granted on condition that all the contracts that the target (De La Rue Kenya Limited) has with the Government of Kenya are honoured.
De La Rue PLC announced in June that it had agreed to sell its International Identity Solutions business to HID Corporation Limited for a cash consideration of £42 million (Sh5.3 billion) on a cash-free debt-free basis.
CAK said that the approval was granted on sound reasoning that both De La Rue Kenya and HID activities overlap in the provision of electronic secure printing solutions, and that post-merger, the new entity will have a market share of less than 15 per cent in each of the markets for supply of e-passports, e-ID, and e-Government identity solutions.
