SportPesa wins share dispute case in London court
The court determined that Paul Wanderi Ndung’u failed to provide evidence to support his allegations of fraud, forgery or unfair prejudice.
Kenya.- Betting operator SportPesa has emerged victorious in a London court case over a share dispute brought against it by Kenyan businessman and shareholder, Paul Wanderi Ndung’u.
The former chair alleged that company directors and shareholders, including Guerassim Nikolov, Gene Grand, Kalilina Lyubomirova and Asenath Wachera Maina, had conspired to reduce his stake in the company from 17 per cent to 0.8 per cent between 2019 and 2022.
Ndung’u also accused the company of forgery and claimed its conduct was oppressive and financially damaging to his interests.
However, the High Court of Justice in London dismissed all claims lodged by the plaintiff, ruling that the dilution of his shares in the company was lawful and necessary. In a 190-page judgment handed down on November 18 by Justice Edwin Johnson, the court determined that Ndung’u failed to provide evidence to support his allegations of fraud, forgery or unfair prejudice.
The judge cleared the four directors of wrongdoing in connection with the share allotments and trademark transfers involving Pevans East Africa, SportPesa Global Holdings and Milestone Games.
The dispute began after Pevans East Africa lost its Kenyan betting licence in 2019 over unpaid taxes estimated at tens of billions of Kenyan shillings (hundreds of millions of euros). The company stopped trading, and its shares lost measurable value. To keep the international brand alive, new capital was raised and the trademark was sold twice for £100,000 each time.
Ndung’u argued these steps were designed to push him and Wachera Maina (who together held 38 per cent of Pevans) out of the business.
The court rejected Ndung’u’s argument, finding that the capital injections were justified to clear tax debts and resume operations under the new licence granted to Milestone Games Limited in 2020.
Milestone is now 71 per cent owned by SportPesa CEO Ronald Karauri and 14 per cent by Robert Macharia. Before the 2019 shutdown, Pevans had paid out KSh 1.57bn (€10.4m) in dividends to shareholders between 2015 and mid-2019. Ndung’u personally received KSh 130m (€867,997) during that period.
The London ruling clears a significant legal obstacle for SportPesa’s UK holding companies, enabling the firm to concentrate on its business in Kenya, Tanzania, South Africa and several European countries.
For Ndung’u, the defeat in London is another setback in a six-year fight to regain control of the brand he helped build.
However, other legal battles continue in Kenya. On November 14, 2025, Ndung’u asked the High Court in Nairobi to freeze Milestone’s use of the SportPesa name, claiming the trademark transfers violated his constitutional rights. The case has been sent to the Constitutional and Human Rights Division for hearing.
