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yuMobile is officially out of the mobile operators scene. This comes afte Kenya’s big three mobile operators finally put pen to paper on a deal, selling yuMobile’s assets to Safaricom and Airtel. The Sh10.5 billion transaction was concluded on Saturday.

“Essar today announced the signing of binding agreements with Safaricom and Airtel for sale of its telecom business in Kenya for approximately $120 million (Sh10.5 billion),” reads a statement by Essar Telecommunications Kenya Ltd said.

The deal is expected to be concluded in the last quarter of this year. Safaricom will take over yuMobile’s network, IT and office infrastructure while Airtel will acquire the company’s subscribers.

“The transaction has received approval from the Communication Authority (CA), subject to all parties involved in the deal meeting certain pre-conditions. The transaction will now be filed with the Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) for approval,” the statement further read.

Commenting on the exit, Firdhose Coovadia, board member of Essar Capital, said: “We also believe that the transaction with Safaricom and Airtel will provide for much-needed consolidation in the Kenyan mobile telecommunications market and provide customers with fewer mobile operators, better equipped to enhance service delivery and greater product offerings.”

Close to 90 per cent of yuMobile’s employees will be absorbed by Safaricom and Airtel.