This archive report was first published on 27 September 2019.
Kenya's Airtel-Telkom merger has hit a snag, with the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) pushing back the deadline for completing its investigation of the deal.
Originally set to be completed by 27th September 2019, the merger was first announced on 8th February.
The EACC is separately investigating whether public funds were lost when the Cabinet approved a plan in 2012 to convert the Treasury's loans in Telkom Kenya into equity as part of a plan to recapitalise and restructure the balance sheet of the company.
Additionally, Telkom Kenya was requested by EACC on August 14 to provide further information in connection with investigations on allegations of misappropriation of public funds.
According to EACC, a separate investigation is also ongoing to establish the circumstances under which the Treasury ceded further ownership of Telkom Kenya to Orange, the French multinational which later sold its stake to private equity fund Helios.
The proposed merger aims to combine Airtel and Telkom Kenya's respective mobile, enterprise and carrier services businesses, forming an entity, Airtel-Telkom, to boost their competitive edge against market-leader Safaricom.
