President Uhuru Kenyatta on Monday, January 20, rang the bell to kick off the trading of Kenya’s first green bond at the London Stock Exchange (LSE) at the first-ever UK-Africa Investment Summit in London, UK.
A statement published on the Presidential Strategic Communication Unit (PSCU) website indicated that the president opened the day’s trading at one of the world’s oldest stock exchanges, the London Stock Exchange, which culminated in the trading of the green bond by Acorn limited.
According to PSCU, the Ksh4 billion bond by Nairobi-based property developer Acorn Holdings that started trading today at the LSE is the first Kenya shilling denominated corporate green bond to be listed in the United Kingdom.
The bond, which was first listed at the Nairobi Stock Exchange last week, is reported to be tailored towards helping the company to raise funds to build environmentally friendly accommodation for 50,000 university students in Nairobi.
President Kenyatta told the guests at the event that the green bonds would provide a great opportunity for African, Carribean and Pacific countries as well as those from the Caribbean and the Pacific region to access large scale capital for sustainable growth.
“There is no better place to appreciate the realities of global economic activity and investment trends than this trading floor,” President Kenyatta was quoted.
Speaking during the launch, he urged UK investors to use Kenya as a gateway to investing in Africa
“Kenya is one of the top ten fastest-growing economies on the continent and also one of the most pro-business nations in Africa. There is probably no better time for African nations and the United Kingdom to explore new and innovative ways of deepening the long-standing partnerships that have existed between our nations,” President Kenyatta stated.
Following the decision to withdraw from the European Union, President Kenyatta said the UK had a renewed mandate to build even stronger investment partnerships with Africa.
Acorn Holdings CEO Edward Kirathe thanked the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID) for supporting the delivery of accommodation to 50,000 university students in Kenya, stating that it was a big boost for the Big 4 Agenda target.
“Thanks to partners like DFID, we have the capital, the know-how and the capacity to deliver this within the set period,” Kirathe stated.
He praised the listing of the green bond at the LSE as a matter that has opened the way for Acorn and other Kenyan businesses to access the huge pools of capital available in the international market.
