Guinness has officially exited the Nigerian market and sold off its controlling shares to Singaporean conglomerate Tolaram Group on Tuesday, June 11.
Guinness has joined a long list of multinationals, like GlaxoSmithKline and Microsoft, that have left Nigeria, citing the harsh economic climate in the country.
“Under the terms of an agreement signed today, 11 June 2024, Tolaram will acquire Diageo’s 58.02% shareholding in Guinness Nigeria royalty agreements for the continued production of the Guinness brand and its locally manufactured Diageo ready-to-drink and mainstream spirits brands,” the company said in a statement Tuesday.
Guinness Nigeria Plc, a public limited liability company quoted on the Nigerian Stock Exchange, was incorporated on April 29, 1950, as a trading company importing Guinness Stout from Dublin.
The Guinness brand has operated in Nigeria since 1950, but with Tolaram’s controlling stake acquisition expected to conclude by 2025, the global brewery brand will have spent 75 years in Nigeria.
In the statement, Guinness said the firm would leave Nigeria next year and hand over to a third-party venture.
“The transaction is expected to be completed during fiscal 2025, subject to obtaining the requisite regulatory approvals in Nigeria,” said the statement signed by Abidemi Ademola, Guinness’s legal director.
