[kictanet] Secret shareholder in digital migration company revealed

[S.M. Muraya]

There was a law in works to allow NSE list firms to be 100% foreign owned.
Not sure which developed nation allows firms primarily owned by foreigners
to control their critical infrastructure. Building a road is one thing,
controlling information flow is another. If we fail to develop local
talent, to create local wealth, we must plan to stash funds overseas ):

http://www.businessdailyafrica.com/CMA-wants-foreign-investors-allowed-fully-own-listed-firms-2016/-/539552/2513614/-/2w6i7p/-/index.html

Apparently some Kenyans own less than 7% of PANG.

http://www.businessdailyafrica.com/Secret-shareholder-in-digital-migration-firm-PANG/-/539546/2628670/-/view/printVersion/-/vgbd5t/-/index.html

*Secret shareholder in digital migration company revealed*

IN SUMMARY

*Excel Magic International Ltd owns 6.7 per cent of the Pan Africa Network
Group’s (PANG’s) issued shares.
*The company, whose shareholders are Kenyan, is registered in the British
Virgin Islands, a tax secrecy jurisdiction.

The Daily Nation has unearthed evidence of a secret Kenyan shareholder in
the Chinese firm at the heart of the country’s digital migration row.

Registry records show that a company called Excel Magic International Ltd
owns 6.7 per cent of the Pan Africa Network Group’s (PANG’s) issued shares.

The company is registered in the British Virgin Islands, a popular tax
secrecy jurisdiction, allowing its true owners to legally remain anonymous.

According to company registry records, however, Excel Magic International’s
shareholding is described as “Kenyan”. It owns 2,500 of the 37,500 shares
(a 6.7 per cent stake) in PANG, which was registered in Kenya on March 4,
2011.

The development has introduced a new twist to the controversy surrounding
digital migration because, until recently, the Communications Authority of
Kenya has been publicly stating PANG Kenya was a wholly-owned Chinese firm.

Observers will be quick to draw parallels with Mobitelea Ventures Ltd, the
shadowy firm that was exposed in 2006 as a secret shareholder in Safaricom.

It emerged that, as Kenya was going through a transition similar to digital
migration — opening up telecommunications by introducing mobile telephones
— individuals in then President Daniel arap Moi’s regime had negotiated
with Vodafone Plc to acquire shares in Safaricom Ltd ahead of its public
listing.

Vodafone Kenya Ltd itself was owned through nominee companies ‘owned’ by a
firm of lawyers. The secret shareholding arrangements were seen as possible
evidence of an indirect kickback to unidentified individuals.

To date, the true identities of the local owners of Mobitelea Ventures, who
earned billions before eventually giving up their stake, are not known.

Excel Magic International gives its address as OMC Chambers, Wickhams, Road
Town, Tortola. The Carribean island of Tortola is the largest and most
populated of the British Virgin Islands, while Road Town is its largest
town.

Records obtained by the Daily Nation show PANG was registered with a
nominal capital of Sh4.1 million, with 500,000 authorised shares valued at
Sh82 each.

PANG’s directors are named as Mr Xinxing Pang and Mr Shang Junqi.

The company was the second to be awarded a Broadcast Signal Distributor
licence by the communications regulator in October 2011, a few months after
registration. Earlier, the government had given a licence to Signet Kenya,
a company it jointly owns with state broadcaster KBC.

CLICK HERE to read the original story on the Daily Nation website
<http://www.nation.co.ke/news/Pang-British-Virgin-Islands-Digital-Migration/-/1056/2628208/-/7xq69t/-/index.html>
.
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/pipermail/kictanet/attachments/20150219/fa57d239/attachment.htm>