Ateker TV 
Kenya’s Capital Markets Authority warns investors to avoid unauthorized platforms claiming to sell Dangote Refinery IPO shares, as the $1.6 billion Nigerian offer draws scam attempts.
The Capital Markets Authority (CMA) said in a statement released on Monday that the refinery’s share offer has not been cleared for marketing or solicitation within Kenya.
The authority flagged a rise in suspicious schemes falsely promising Kenyans a chance to buy into the West African oil facility.
Why the Alert Now
The caution follows a surge of retail investor enthusiasm in Nigeria, where the Dangote Refinery IPO launched on September 14 and is set to run until October 13, 2026.
Nigeria’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has cleared the sale of 4.1 billion ordinary shares priced at 525 naira apiece — a deal that could raise 2.15 trillion naira (about $1.6 billion) if fully taken up.
At full subscription, the transaction would peg the refinery’s valuation at close to $47 billion (roughly Sh6.1 trillion). Proceeds are earmarked for scaling up the plant’s crude-processing capabilities.
Since starting operations in 2024, the refinery has been processing around 650,000 barrels of crude daily, with ambitions to eventually push output to 1.4 million barrels per day.
Low Entry Cost Fuels Interest — and Scam Risk
Part of the offer’s appeal lies in its accessibility: the minimum purchase is just 10 shares, priced at 5,250 naira, equivalent to roughly $4 (about Sh518).
Legitimate participation requires going through Nigeria’s officially sanctioned receiving agents, licensed brokers, or approved digital investment platforms.
Financial markets commentator Jackson Mwangi noted that approval from Nigerian regulators does not extend automatically to Kenya. Under Kenya’s Capital Markets Act, any company or promoter wishing to publicly market securities to Kenyans must first submit a prospectus for CMA vetting.
Additional requirements are laid out under the Capital Markets (Public Offers, Listings and Disclosures) Regulations, 2023, which govern disclosure standards and approval procedures for public offers.
Mwangi explained that this legal requirement means any genuine effort to sell Dangote shares to Kenyan buyers would still need to satisfy local regulatory conditions, including formal CMA sign-off.
“This means that any legitimate attempt to market the Dangote shares directly to Kenyan members of the public would have to comply with Kenya’s regulatory framework, including obtaining the necessary CMA approval.”
He added that although the Dangote offer itself is a legitimate transaction in Nigeria, that legitimacy doesn’t automatically extend to every Kenyan advertisement, WhatsApp forward, website, or app claiming to distribute the shares.
“While the Dangote IPO is a legitimate Nigerian securities offering, it does not mean every Kenyan advert, WhatsApp message, website or investment platform claiming to sell the shares is legitimate,” he said.
Advice for Kenyan Investors
Mwangi urged Kenyans interested in the offer to confirm that any broker or platform is properly licensed to facilitate cross-border investment services, and to check that the specific offer carries valid Kenyan regulatory approval before sending any money.
His warning echoes similar concerns raised by Nigeria’s own SEC, which has already detected fraudulent pre-IPO marketing schemes targeting prospective investors.
The Nigerian regulator has urged the public to rely solely on officially recognized subscription channels and to disregard unsolicited investment pitches.
