Monarch Capital to Acquire 60% of De La Rue Kenya after Competition Authority Approval

Kenya's Competition Authority has cleared a Mauritius‑based firm’s purchase of a controlling stake in De La Rue Kenya, shifting ownership to Monarch Capital while the state retains 40%.

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The Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) gave the green light for Monarch Capital Limited, a Mauritius‑based investment firm, to buy a 60 per cent share in De La Rue Kenya.

CAK Director General David Kimeli said the approval was issued after the Authority examined the transaction under the Competition Act, invoking Section 46(6) to sanction the deal.

Following the transaction, Monarch Capital will hold the majority 60 per cent stake, while the Kenyan government, through the National Treasury, will keep the remaining 40 per cent.

De La Rue Kenya, which has printed Kenyan banknotes since 1966, suspended its printing operations in January 2023 after a year without new orders from the government.

The suspension came after the Central Bank of Kenya awarded a five‑year contract to Germany’s Giesecke+Devrient in 2024, ending De La Rue’s role as the national currency printer.

The Ruaraka facility in Nairobi, established in October 1992, had been the primary site for printing Kenyan notes for over three decades, including the 2019 series introduced after the 2010 Constitution.

The government originally acquired its 40 per cent share in De La Rue Kenya in 2017, forming a joint venture with the British security‑printing company.