Sameer Africa, Tyre maker who became Industrial Landlord

In today’s newsletter: Sameer Africa trades tyres for titles in a bold real estate pivot, while a new regional report warns that Kenya’s narcotics economy is shifting from transit zone to trafficking powerhouse.

I am Brian from The Kenyan Wall Street and these are our day's business stories:

From Tyres to Titles: How Sameer Africa Reinvented Itself

A decade after shutting its factory doors, Sameer Africa has emerged as one of Nairobi’s most profitable industrial landlords

By Harry Njuguna

Once known for its Yana tyres, Sameer Africa has quietly transformed into a real estate success story. The company abandoned manufacturing in 2016 and watched its revenues plunge but its profits have since rebounded sharply.

A new business model anchored by rental income from properties like Sameer Business Park has pushed profit margins higher than during its industrial heyday. In 2024, 99.7% of the company’s revenue came from real estate, a stunning reversal from a decade earlier. It also cleared all its debt and cut its workforce by more than half, streamlining operations for the property market.

But with nearly all its earnings now tied to rent, Sameer must navigate the risks of market concentration. Can this unlikely industrial pivot withstand a volatile real estate landscape? Read the full story here >>>>>

The High Road to Crisis: Kenya’s Evolved Role in the Narco Trade

Meth labs, synthetic opioids, and defiant cannabis fields are turning Kenya into the unspoken capital of East Africa’s narcotics economy.

By Brian Nzomo

Kenya is no longer just a transit point for illicit drugs. It’s a manufacturing and consumption hub in the making. A new report by the Eastern and Southern Africa Commission on Drugs paints a sobering picture: industrial meth labs, homegrown cannabis economies, and whispers of fentanyl creeping into the region.

From the port of Mombasa to Nairobi’s alleyways, synthetic drugs are displacing traditional narcotics and overwhelming fragile public health systems. Cocaine, once an elite export, now fuels both high society and the city’s informal settlements. As the heroin supply shifts and new chemicals enter the scene, so too does the danger of a silent opioid epidemic. Law enforcement appears outpaced, while policy lags behind booming underground markets.

This is a story of criminal innovation, and a country inching toward a full-blown crisis. Read the full story >>>>>

Editor's Picks

📱 Crippling the State’s Phone Tracking Plan

By Brian Nzomo 

The High Court has struck down the government’s plan to register all mobile phone IMEI numbers, calling it unconstitutional and legally baseless. The ruling ends a months-long standoff over the proposed database, which privacy advocates warned would enable mass surveillance. Justice Chacha Mwita found that the directive lacked parliamentary approval, violated privacy rights, and ignored safeguards required by the Data Protection Act. The government’s attempt to tie phone access to tax enforcement was deemed excessive and coercive. Read more »»»»»

💸 Kenya’s Record Debt Driven by Domestic Borrowing Surge

By Harry Njuguna 

Kenya’s public debt has hit a historic KSh 11.51 trillion, fueled largely by an aggressive ramp-up in domestic borrowing. Treasury Bills have soared to over KSh 1 trillion—an all-time high—signaling growing short-term borrowing to meet urgent fiscal needs. Domestic debt now exceeds KSh 6.3 trillion, with the government increasingly tapping local markets even as external obligations rise. Interest payments alone have crossed KSh 1 trillion this year, pushing the debt service-to-revenue ratio to an unsustainable 70%. The borrowing binge may offer temporary liquidity, but it’s tightening the noose on public finances. Read more »»»»»

 Capital Markets 

NSE Gainers & Losers 

Opinion 

The Best African Investment No One Is Talking About

By Kyle Schutter

While flashy startups collapse and foreign VCs circle conferences, one African company quietly grew 125x by betting on food and not apps. Africa Eats skipped the hype and built a portfolio of gritty, profitable businesses feeding millions and enriching local founders. They didn’t just rethink investment, they rewrote the rules of the stock exchange. If you care about real returns and real impact, read this opinion piece »»»»»

Stories you missed 

♦️ Finance. Kenya’s insurance regulator has cancelled the licences of 20 insurance brokerage firms, citing persistent compliance failures and inactivity, in one of the most significant regulatory crackdowns on intermediaries in recent years.

♦️ Tech. Buy-now-Pay-Later startup Wabeh has disputed news that it has shut down, saying that it has just downscaled some of its operations to ‘focus’ on refining critical operations.

♦️ Logistics. The Port of Mombasa has posted robust growth in cargo and container volumes in the first half of 2025, defying global shipping headwinds to maintain its upward trajectory.

♦️ Policy. Kenya’s media freedom is facing increased strain, with the latest Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Index showing a sharp deterioration in press freedom indicators.

On your watchlist

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