Retail chain, Carrefour, has received a KSh3 billion loan from South Africa’s Standard Bank Group to expand its supermarkets business in Kenya.

In its latest annual report, Standard Bank Group revealed that it partnered with Majid Al Futtaim (MAF), Dubai’s leading shopping mall, retail, and leisure group, to support the expansion of their retail presence in Kenya.

Carrefour launched in Kenya in 2016 and has been undergoing a rapid expansion in a bid to replace once-upon-a-time giants, Uchumi and Nakumatt. Currently, it has seven branches in the country.

It operates over 250 hypermarkets, supermarkets, and online stores in 15 countries across the region, with plans to extend into 38 countries in the Middle East, Central Asia, Africa, and Russia.

In 2019, the retail chain sales hit KSh18.7 billion from its Kenyan outlets, signifying a 28% increase from KSh14.6 billion recorded in 2018. Additionally, the chain announced expansion plans to new markets in Central Asia and Africa, its first target being Uzbekistan.