Vivo Energy gets green light to acquire fast food chain KFC

The Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) has approved Vivo Energy’s proposed acquisition of KUKU Foods which operates American fast food chain Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) in the country.

The authority, in a statement released on Monday, stated that the transaction between the two parties had met the threshold for a merger since their combined turnover for the preceding year was over Ksh.1 billion.

CAK also stated that despite Vivo Energy being an oil importer and marketer while KUKU Foods is a restaurant franchise, the two parties’ business activities do not overlap.

“…the lines of business are complimentary in nature since fast food outlets can be set up in petroleum retail outlets, providing convenience to motorists who frequent the strategically-located stations,” read the statement.

KFC – which is the third leading fast food chain in Kenya with a 15% market share, behind Innscor (16%) and Java (34%) – has at least 24 outlets across major towns in the country.

According to the authority, the proposed transaction will not have an impact on the market share of the merged entity and will unlikely raise competition concerns.

“Additionally, the transaction is unlikely to lead to any negative public interest concerns,” added CAK.