Cytonn Investments

Cytonn Investments
IndustryInvestments & Real Estate
Founded2014; 11 years ago (2014)
HeadquartersNairobi, Kenya,
Nairobi
Key people
[1][2]
ProductsReal Estate, Structured Solutions, Private Equity & Advisory.
BrandsCytonn Real Estate, Cytonn Technologies, Cytonn Diaspora
Websitewww.cytonn.com

Cytonn Investments is an international real estate company and private equity firm with offices in Nairobi, Kenya and DC Metro Area in the United States.

History

In 2014, four senior managers at publicly listed British-American Investments Company (Britam), left the company to form Cytonn. This included

  1. Edwin Dande – Chief executive officer at Cytonn
  2. Shiv Arora – Former chief financial officer at Cytonn
  3. Patricia Wanjama – Head of Legal at Cytonn
  4. Elizabeth Nkukuu – Chief investment officer at Cytonn [3][4]

The move lead Britam to seek their removal from the roll of accountants, advocates and financial analysts by accusing them of collusion.[5]

Cytonn posted a profit of Ksh 630 million in its first year of operation. The company has put a number of its business under Administration and 4,000 investors are in courts with Cytonn because of its failure to owner obligations.

Cytonn’s investments are organised into four main classes

Private Equity Cytonn focuses in the areas of (a) Banking (b) Insurance (c) Hospitality (d) Education. [6]

Real Estate Focusing in the areas of (i) real estate investments (ii) real estate backed fixed income notes and (iii) rent stabilized investments units. With ten Ongoing projects.

High Yield Includes:

  • Cytonn High Yield Solutions (CHYS: For short term investors)
  • Cytonn Project Notes: For medium to long-term investments

Asset Managers Cytonn Asset Managers offers a range of differentiated Unit Trust Products to both institutional and retail investors as well as foreign investors.

Ownership

The company stock is owned by the four founders of the firm.[3] In 2015, the founders sold 10 percent of the company stock to "high net-worth investors".[7] The shareholding in the business is as depicted in the table below.

Cytonn Stock Ownership
Rank Name of Owner Position Percentage Ownership
1 Edwin Dande, Shiv Arora, Patricia Wanjama & Elizabeth Nkuku
CEO, Former CFO, Legal Officer & CIO respectively
90
Others
Equity partners
10.0
Total
100.00

In February 2019, Cytonn's Chief Executive Officer, Edwin Dande, indicated that the firm was considering listing its shares on the Nairobi Stock Exchange and subsequently cross-listing on the London Stock Exchange.[8]

Controversy

The Kenyan Capital Markets Authority (CMA) on several occasions opened investigations into Cytonn High Yield Solutions (CHYS) and Cytonn Project Notes (CPN). The regulator does not regulate the two funds, which have failed to pay investors upon maturity of their investments totaling Sh13.5bn.[9][10]

See also

References

  1. ^ Mureithi, Francis (26 August 2016). "Kenya: Cytonn Investments Posts Sh631 Million Profit in 2015". Daily Nation via AllAfrica.com. Nairobi. Retrieved 22 September 2016.
  2. ^ Kariuki, James (11 January 2016). "Real estate is where wealth will grow in 2016, says firm in report". Daily Nation. Nairobi. Retrieved 22 September 2016.
  3. ^ a b "Britam faces classic case of new money posing threat to old". Daily Nation. Nairobi. 14 October 2014. Retrieved 22 September 2016.
  4. ^ "Cytonn Investments Management Limited: The Team". Nairobi: Cytonn Investments Management Limited (Cytonn). 22 September 2016. Archived from the original on 23 September 2016. Retrieved 22 September 2016.
  5. ^ Wasuna, Brian (24 December 2014). "Britam, Cytonn serve up 2014's fiercest corporate battle". Business Daily Africa. Nairobi. Retrieved 22 September 2016.
  6. ^ "Cytonn Investments Management Limited: Investment Solutions". Nairobi: Cytonn Investments Management Limited (Cytonn). 22 September 2016. Archived from the original on 23 September 2016. Retrieved 22 September 2016.
  7. ^ Elayne Wangalwa (22 April 2015). "Cytonn Investments CEO outlines company's future". CNBC Africa. Archived from the original on 23 September 2016. Retrieved 22 September 2016.
  8. ^ Kariuki, James (19 February 2019). "Cytonn eyes bourse, London stock listing". Business Daily Africa. Nairobi. Retrieved 19 February 2019.
  9. ^ "Pay defaults in Sh13.5bn Cytonn fund invites fresh CMA action". Business Daily. 18 June 2021. Retrieved 30 May 2024.
  10. ^ "Capital Markets Authority". 16 May 2024. Retrieved 30 May 2024.