BY ONLINE REPORTER–
Zimbabwe’s competition watchdog, the Competition and Tariff Commission (CTC), has cleared 26 mergers and acquisitions, reflecting rising investor confidence, ongoing corporate restructuring, and increased deal-making activity involving both local and international firms.
Out of the approved deals, 23 were cleared unconditionally, while three were approved with specific safeguards. The transactions spanned several sectors. In the dairy industry, the commission approved the full acquisition of Dendairy (Pvt) Ltd by Vamara Group Limited and 3DZ Capital Limited, subject to conditions ensuring fair and non-discriminatory trade practices.
Within tourism and hospitality, the acquisition of Great Zimbabwe Hotel by Mewame Family Trust and the purchase of Briolette Services (Montclair) by Rainbow Tourism Group were approved without conditions. In logistics, Unifreight Limited acquired Nimbcon Trading (Pvt) Ltd in a deal combining horizontal and vertical integration. Foreign and regional investors were also active.
Lactalis acquired Vista 24 Pty Ltd, while Novus Holdings increased its stake in Mustek Ltd. In the energy sector, Deux Rivières Holding SA secured a 60% shareholding in Kensys Investments (Pvt) Ltd. Locally, Pintail Trading (Pvt) Ltd moved to acquire assets belonging to Nanavac Investments, trading as Choppies Zimbabwe.
The CTC reported that it handled 30 merger cases in total, finalising 26 in 2025. Most approvals suggested minimal risk to competition or public interest, while the few conditional approvals addressed potential concerns.
Two conditionally approved deals were later withdrawn, and one transaction was both rejected and subsequently withdrawn. One case remained under review at year-end.
The number of completed merger decisions rose sharply from 14 in 2024 to 26 in 2025 an 85.7% increase highlighting improved efficiency in processing cases.
Public interest considerations, especially job protection, remained central to the evaluation process.
In terms of deal composition, domestic transactions dominated at 60%, followed by local-foreign deals at 23%, and foreign-only transactions at 17%.
The commission noted that this pattern reflects both domestic consolidation and Zimbabwe’s increasing integration into regional and global markets.
Reaffirming its commitment to fair competition, the CTC stressed that all approved entities must adhere to non-discriminatory trading practices.
Overall, the rise in merger approvals points to a gradually improving investment environment, driven by both local consolidation and growing cross-border investment activity.