Sovereign fund Investment Corp of Dubai (ICD) has bought a 1.4 percent stake in Dangote Cement, Nigeria's biggest company by market capitalisation, for $300 million, a Dangote spokesman said on September 08. Dangote Cement spokesman Carl Franklin confirmed the sale, but provided no further details.
Stockbrokers in Lagos told Reuters 243 million shares of Dangote Cement were transferred to ICD, which holds stakes in some of the emirate's top companies, at 200 naira each, a 12 percent premium to Dangote Cement's price of around 223 naira on September 08.
"ICD is diversifying its portfolio into the West African market through a minority stake in Dangote Cement. We believe this bodes well for future investments into Nigeria from the Middle East," Akinbamidele Akintola, an Africa equity sales executive at Renaissance Capital, said. Dangote Cement, owned by Africa's richest man Aliko Dangote, is expanding and plans to roll out cement plants across Africa to reach an annual 62 million tonnes capacity by 2017, up from a projected 42 million tonnes this year.