Grit’s Sh20.9bn Kenya property empire under pressure

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A Mauritius-based property firm that owns malls, luxury homes, and office blocks in Kenya valued over Sh20 billion remains suspended from the London Stock Exchange (LSE) following delays in publishing its financial results.

Grit Real Estate Income Group, which owns properties such as Naivasha’s Buffalo Mall and Rosslyn Grove that hosts US Embassy staff, was suspended from trading at the LSE and the Stock Exchange Mauritius (SEM) from May 1, for failing to file its financial statements.

The United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said Grit had requested the suspension of trading of its shares to enable it to put its house in order.

“Shareholders of the Company and the general public are referred to the communique released on 29 April 2026, regarding the company’s request for a temporary suspension of the listing of its ordinary shares, following a delay in the publication of its audited financial results for the 18-month period ended 31 December 2025,” LSE said ahead of the suspension.

In its unaudited financial results for the year ending June 2025, Grit reported a loss of $65.42 million (Sh8.5 billion), reflecting the tough operating conditions.

“In Kenya, the challenging economic environment impacted the operations of Orbit Products Africa Limited, resulting in a reduced space requirement and a renegotiation of rental terms at lower rates. Although the surrendered space has since been fully re-let, it was done so at lower market rentals,” the company stated.

Grit also said it has faced costly loans in Kenya, ranging between 15 and 20 percent, constraining access to affordable finance, and delaying its development pipelines and lease commitments.

Four Kenyan lenders have loaned the company Sh12.3 billion.

By June last year, Grit owed Absa Bank Kenya Sh4.5 billion, NCBA Bank Kenya (Sh3.9 billion), Stanbic Bank Kenya (Sh3.3 billion), and Sh503 million to the Housing Finance Corporation (HFC). All the loans by Kenyan lenders are in US dollars and total to $94.9 million.

The $35 million loan owed to Absa Bank Kenya was the biggest and issued to DH3 Kenya Ltd, the beneficial owner of Rosslyn Grove, a property with 90 diplomatic apartments housing US Embassy staff.

The property was completed in 2022 by Gateway Real Estate Africa (Grea), a subsidiary of Grit and US developer Verdant Ventures.

NCBA Bank Kenya’s $30.4 million loan was issued to Grit Services Ltd, a subsidiary of Grit Real Estate Income Group, through six facilities, and Stanbic Bank Kenya’s $25.7 million loan was issued to Gateway CCI Ltd, a subsidiary of the Group that owns Eneo at Tatu City.

Grit also tapped a $3.88 million loan from HFC under Buffalo Mall Ltd, the local corporate entity that operates the Naivasha-based shopping mall.

The mall was affected when the Covid-19 pandemic restricted movement. The exit of Tuskys Supermarket, the anchor tenant until late 2020, also affected footfall and tenancy levels, since its replacement, Chandarana Foodplus, took up less space when it entered the mall in late 2021.

Grit has invested in real estate across 11 African countries and targets retail properties such as malls and high-end offices to host blue-chip firms and business processing outsourcing (BPOs).

Sh20.87 billion portfolio

In Kenya, it owns the Buffalo Mall that was valued at Sh1.2 billion in June last year and is part of the owners of Rosslyn Grove, a property valued at Sh7.6 billion last year.

The company also owns Eneo at Tatu City- a property completed in 2024 and valued at about Sh6.2 billion ($48.3 million) in June last year. The property has a building with a space of 25,752 square metres and has 547 parking bays at the Tatu City special economic zone (SEZ), hosting BPO provider, CCI Global, as its anchor tenant.

Other properties fully owned by Grit include Orbit Complex in Westlands (Sh2.5 billion) and Imperial Distribution Centre along the Mombasa Road (Sh2 billion)

Real estate firm, Knight Frank, valued the properties in Kenya at $161.1 million (Sh20.87 billion), out of the total value of $806 million for all the investment properties Grit holds directly.

The company also owns properties in neighbouring Uganda, where it owns Metroplex Shopping Mall, and has Elevation Diplomatic Residences in Ethiopia.

Reporting originally appeared via Business Daily. Read the full source for additional context.