Online Reporter
Business Reporter
The Competition and Tariff Commission (CTC) has unconditionally approved the acquisition of Caribbea Bay Resort by the Public Service Pension Fund.
Under the transaction, the pension fund acquires the resort’s immovable property and staff housing, while its wholly owned subsidiary, Monomotapa Hospitality, takes over the hotel operations.
Caribbea Bay Resort is a three-star hospitality asset in the resort town of Kariba and was previously owned by African Sun Limited.
The regulatory authority evaluated the transaction as a horizontal merger with conglomerate elements, defining the relevant markets as hospitality services in Kariba and pension management services in Zimbabwe.
In its 2026 second-quarter newsletter, the CTC established that the deal will not substantially lessen competition or create a market monopoly.
The commission noted that while the merged entity possesses theoretical market-entrenchment capacity, it lacks the commercial incentive to execute anti-competitive bundling strategies.
“The Commission established that the proposed transaction is unlikely to result in a substantial lessening of competition, nor the creation of a monopoly situation that is contrary to the public interest. In light of the analysis, the Commission approved the merger without conditions,” said the CTC.
Monomotapa Hospitality already manages Monomotapa Hotel in Harare and Ruparara Valley Lodge in the Eastern Highlands.
The iconic Monomotapa Hotel previously operated under an international franchise arrangement as the Crowne Plaza Monomotapa Hotel under InterContinental Hotels Group management.
The central Harare hotel was transferred to state pension fund ownership as part of the fund’s broader portfolio diversification into commercial and leisure real estate.
