Quickmart, Kenya’s second-largest supermarket chain, began trading on the Nairobi Securities Exchange today, November 12, 2026, the date set in its IPO timetable. The IPO sold two billion existing shares at KSh7.50, raising KSh15 billion for the selling shareholders, with the company receiving no proceeds. Adenia Partners remains the anchor shareholder.
The listing completes a timetable set out at the start of the offer. The IPO closed on October 30, results were announced on November 6, and successful investors’ CDS accounts were credited on November 11, before trading began on November 12. The entire issued share capital of four billion ordinary shares has been admitted to the NSE’s Main Investment Market Segment.
The offer was oversubscribed. Applications totalled KSh18.4 billion against the KSh15 billion target, a demand level of about 22.5 percent above supply. Foreign investors accounted for a substantial share of demand. The UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, through its MOBILIST programme, invested about KSh1.94 billion, roughly 13 percent of the offer.
Valuation has been contested. At KSh7.50, the offer values the chain at about KSh30 billion. Investia Africa estimated fair value at KSh21.1 billion to KSh24.9 billion, below that figure. Sterling Capital put fair value at KSh6.96 a share, 7.2 percent below the offer price, which suggests investors may be paying a premium for growth.
The retailer’s operating figures support its listing case. Revenue grew at an average annual rate of 18.4 percent between 2021 and 2025, and revenue for the first half of 2026 was KSh27.3 billion. Quickmart projects full-year 2026 revenue of KSh58.2 billion. It records about five million customer transactions a month, and its Q-Points loyalty programme has about 2.5 million members, who accounted for about 74 percent of sales.
Shareholder returns are a central part of the offer. Quickmart projects a dividend of KSh0.50 a share for 2026, a yield of 6.7 percent at the offer price, and expects to distribute about KSh2 billion in 2026 and KSh2.5 billion in 2027. Sterling Capital estimates a lower 2026 dividend of KSh0.41, a yield of about 5.5 percent. The gap between the two estimates shows how much depends on the company’s forecasts.
The chain has a substantial store network. It operates 72 stores across 16 counties, 35 of which open 24 hours a day, and it holds an estimated 15 percent share of Kenya’s modern grocery market. The company plans to open 10 to 15 new stores a year between 2026 and 2030, expanding into urban, peri-urban, regional and coastal markets.
The listing is also a test for the sector. Quickmart is described as the first major supermarket to list on the NSE since Uchumi Supermarkets in 1992, and Uchumi later collapsed, as did Nakumatt and Tuskys. Investor confidence in formal retail has been shaken before, which makes the company’s governance and results especially closely watched.
Chief Executive Peter Kang’iri said the listing would give Kenyans the chance to own a share of a business they already shop in. The company says it has governance, risk and financial control frameworks suited to a listed company.
The next signals will be the first weeks of trading relative to the KSh7.50 offer price, the company’s first results as a listed business, and progress on its dividend and store-opening plans. Investors will also watch whether the valuation gap identified by analysts narrows as trading develops.
