Kenyan investors and capital market participants are seeking exposure to Dangote Refinery’s ongoing initial public offering through a proposed Global Depositary Receipt listing on the Nairobi Securities Exchange.

Business Today Kenya reported the development on September 29, 2026, following an institutional investor engagement session with Dangote Group President and Chief Executive Officer, Aliko Dangote, and members of his executive team.

Under the proposed unsponsored GDR programme, Kenyan investors would be able to trade receipts representing shares in Dangote Refinery on the NSE in Kenyan shillings.

The underlying shares would remain held in custody in Nigeria, while the primary listing would remain on the Nigerian Exchange.

The proposal would enable Kenyan investors to participate in the Nigerian IPO through their domestic capital market, without having to trade directly on the Nigerian Exchange.

A GDR is a financial instrument representing shares held in another country, allowing investors to gain exposure to foreign-listed securities through their local stock exchange.

“Kenyan investors and capital market participants are exploring a structure that would give them access to Dangote Petroleum Refinery & Petrochemicals FZE (DPRP) initial public offer – now simply known in investment circles as the Dangote Refinery IPO – through an inward unsponsored Global Depositary Receipt (GDR) listing on the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE),” the report read in part.

The CEO of the NSE, Frank Mwiti, said the proposed structure is designed to make cross-border investment more accessible to Kenyan institutional and retail investors through existing local capital market infrastructure.

Chairman of Renaissance Capital,
David Kinyua, said the programme could attract up to $300m from Kenyan investors. He added that, subject to regulatory approval and final terms, it could become Africa’s first unsponsored inward GDR programme of its kind.

Stanley Kariuki, Managing Director of Renaissance Capital, said the GDRs would be traded and settled in Kenyan shillings.

Dangote Refinery’s IPO has attracted interest beyond Nigeria, with earlier developments pointing to efforts to expand access to the offer across African markets.

The proposed Kenyan GDR programme builds on these efforts by providing a specific mechanism through which investors in Kenya could participate in the IPO through the country’s domestic capital market.