Kenya Top Investment Hub in East Africa

March 12, 2025

(3 Minutes Read)

Kenya maintained its position as the region’s top investment hub, accounting for 10 of the 13 deals announced in January, while Tanzania followed with two deals, and Rwanda recorded a single transaction. Deal activity in the region spread across major sectors, with financial services recording the most transactions with 6 deals.

East Africa’s private capital markets began 2025 with 13 transactions with a total value of US$38.7 million in disclosed deals, according to the I&M Burbidge’s East Africa Financial Review for January 2025.

Other sectors including automotive, energy, agribusiness, hospitality, ICT, and manufacturing each accounted for a single transaction.

Mergers & Acquisitions and Venture Capital were the most active investor segments with 4 transactions each, trailed by Private Equity recording 3 entries, DFI recording 2 deals and lastly PE Exit recording a single investment.

According to the report, investment activity in the region is expected to remain dynamic in 2025, supported by persistent structural tailwinds, expanding geographical opportunities, and an increasing demand for innovative and inorganic growth strategies.

Policy uncertainty and economic pressures have also led to sectoral consolidation, with equity capital becoming a key lever for businesses looking to build resilience.

Notable Kenyan deals included Village Capital’s USD150,000 investment in women-led startups, the Grant Thornton Kenya and Devani Devani merger, DOB Equity’s investment in Spouts International, Novastar Ventures’ USD3.5 million investment in Sistema Bio and Renew Capital’s investment in Sevi