Sunday, 05 Sep 2010
Fechim Investment Limited PDF Print E-mail
Fechim Investments was first registered as a partnership on October 13, 1992. On February 2, 1994 it was registered as Fechim Investments Limited under Kenya’s Companies Act (Cap 486). It was a small savings and investment club where members made equal monthly contributions, the amount for each year being determined by consensus to ensure full achievement of targets and shareholder compliance.

In 1996, one of the four founder members decided to leave and the other three exercised the pre-emption rights and bought his shares, split equally between them.In the years 1994 to 2002, Fechim grew slowly but steadily. As an investment club, it relied wholly on monthly contributions by members as the source of capital, all of it being invested principally in the local capital markets.

From 1996, there was a steady drop in the rate of GDP growth of the Kenyan economy, the lowest being negative 0.2% of 2000. A bear stock market reflected this poor economic performance, with the years between 2000 and 2002 being the worst. This trend was reversed from 2003, when the national economy and the stock market began to recover. In tandem with the capital market turnaround, Fechim’s fortunes changed for the better from 2003. There was clear indication that there was a lot of growth potential in the capital markets investment sub-sector, in which the company had chosen to operate.

In July 2005, the then three shareholders had a strategy workshop at which they drew up the Company’s 2005-2007 Strategic Plan. The main thrust then was to step up the growth of the Company through capital injection from new shareholders through private placement of shares. In the first private placement, 3 (three) new shareholders were enlisted on January 1, 2006. The second private placement brought on board another 6 (six) more shareholders on January 1, 2007 to bring the total to 12 (twelve) shareholders.

Current Strategic Plan

Another shareholders’ retreat in March 2007 set in motion the formulation of the current 2007-2011 Strategic Plan, which began with a two-phase recapitalization programme. The first phase involved a bonus and a rights issue for the existing shareholders.

The second phase of the recapitalization programme began on August 1, 2008 and was concluded on March 31, 2009. Thirteen more members joined the Company, resulting in the current total membership of 25.

Fechim Investment Limited is a founder corporate member the Kenya Association of Investment Groups, which was formed in April 2007 as an umbrella organisation for investment groups from all over the country to look after their interests and promote their growth.

Overall, Fechim Investment Limited shareholders have confidence in that Kenya and the other economies in the region are poised for sustained (and higher) economic growth than has been witnessed before.

The Company is not restricting itself to the African region. It has already invested off-shore with a view of taking advantage of higher returns in the faster growing regions of the world and also for the purpose of diversification to hedge against shocks in various individual economies.