NAIROBI, Kenya, May 15 – Asahi Group Holdings Ltd has received regulatory approval to proceed with its acquisition of a majority stake in East African Breweries PLC without making a mandatory takeover offer to minority shareholders in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.
The Japanese firm announced that regulators across the three East African markets had granted exemptions following its planned acquisition of 100 percent of Diageo Kenya Limited shares from Diageo Holdings Netherlands B.V..
The transaction will indirectly give Asahi control of 65 percent of EABL’s issued share capital.
The exemptions were granted by the Capital Markets Authority, Capital Markets and Securities Authority and Capital Markets Authority Uganda under their respective takeover and mergers regulations.
EABL is listed on the Nairobi Securities Exchange and cross-listed on the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange and the Uganda Securities Exchange.
Asahi said completion of the transaction still depends on antitrust approvals from the Competition Authority of Kenya, the Fair Competition Commission and Uganda’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Cooperatives.
The acquisition was first publicly announced on December 18, 2025.
