AGF’s Anna Lyudvig speaks with David Kitawi Mwakitele, Director in charge of Business Development and Strategy at Seriani Asset Managers, on the state of the Kenyan pension fund industry
Whilst the private sector has spent the last six years reducing costs, improving efficiencies and boosting their competitiveness, Government has been making little headway in cutting its own costs. In the early years of the Unity Government, budgets were set on a cash receipt basis with no recourse to borrowing. Since 2013 however there has been a growing issuance of treasury bills initially as a means to repay private sector debts, but then to cover the historical debts of the Reserve Bank and latterly ZAMCO. With rapidly declining tax receipts and no simultaneous spending cuts, Government have been issuing treasury bills to the banks in order to fund itself and pay civil service salaries. The net result is that as at April, treasury bills now represent 30% of total bank deposits (source: RBZ) having been below 10% only one year ago.
For investors looking at African fixed income opportunities, Angola might not be on the investment radar. The fixed income market in the Africa's second largest crude exporter remains at an early stage of development with only a handful of instruments trading. AGF looks closely to identify investment opportunities and risks
Following the success of its flagship trade finance fund, Barak Fund Management has recently announced the launch of additional investment vehicles to fulfil the needs of their current investors. AGF sits down with Giles Hedley, Investor Relations Officer, to learn about new funds and opportunities in the trade finance space in Sub-Saharan Africa
SAVCA spoke to Justin Stanford, co-Founder and MD of the 4Di Capital, about the state of venture capital in South Africa, and the outlook for deal-making and fundraising
For Emerging Capital Partners’ (ECP) co-Founder, Managing Director and co-Chief Executive Hurley Doddy, there is no lack of opportunity in Africa and no oversupply of capital. With 16 years of experience investing in Africa, the Pan-African private equity firm has raised over $2bn for investment across the African continent, has made 62 investments and completed 39 exits.
The South African Venture Capital (VC) industry shows an encouraging rise in the number of new fund managers, an increase in deal flow and in profitable exits, while deal size declines. The South African venture capital (VC) industry now represents almost R2bn in assets under management, with healthy confidence levels that are commensurate with reported rising deal activity, a pleasing exits record and a significant increase in VC fund managers and industry professionals.
West Africa’s Regional Stock Exchange, the Bourse Régionale des Valeurs Mobilières de l’Afrique de l’Ouest (BRVM) came to New York in May this year to attract US investors on the market, promote investment in countries of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) and ensure maximum visibility for the BRVM and regional businesses on the world stage. AGF had a unique opportunity to meet with Edoh Kossi Amenounve, BRVM’s Chief Executive Officer, to discuss BRVM’s performance, its strategic plan and why the Exchange is initiating dialogue with US frontier funds.
A trailblazer for some of the less explored frontier markets, the World Bank’s International Finance Corporation (IFC) has invested $5.4bn in private equity funds in emerging markets since 2000. So what does it take for a private fund to partner with the IFC? Frontera’s Managing Editor Gavin Serkin asked Maria Kozloski, Chief Investment Officer of the IFC’s private equity funds group, in our latest.
Investors with a long term investment horizon may wish to consider investment opportunities in the development of commercial African real estate such as shopping malls, office blocks and warehouses. In frontier Africa (i.e. Africa outside of South Africa), new projects are typically delivered by developers at double digit yields (calculated as rent/total cost including land). And, importantly for international investors, these yields are in US dollars because rents in frontier Africa are normally paid in dollars or settled in local currency but referenced back to dollars. Applying leverage (we use a maximum of 60%), annual rental escalations of 3-4% and yield compression at time of exit, one can see that it is possible to achieve net compound investment returns in the high teens or more.
For a very long time Nigeria has been the dominant stock market in Sub-Saharan Africa excluding South Africa. This was mostly because of its sheer size and depth of the market. However as limitations on USD expatriation reduce investor appetite for Nigeria, more and more investors are lured to Kenya, a country that never had the luxury of easy oil revenues. Nigeria’s total market capitalization is still much bigger. However, with international investors refusing to trade in Nigeria until its currency is devalued it may be only a matter of time before Kenya will become the most traded Sub-Saharan Africa market after South Africa.
Africa’s population boom is creating demand for residential property. In 2013, Phatisa, an African firm with deep roots in private equity, introduced an eastern and southern African investment initiative in response to the ever-increasing housing shortage - the Pan African Housing Fund (PAHF). AGF speaks with Jan van der Merwe, Fund Partner, PAHF, about investment opportunities, challenges in the housing space and why ESG matters
Mediterrania Capital Partners is one of a handful of private equity firms investing in the Maghreb region (Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia). AGF’s Anna Lyudvig speaks with Albert Alsina, Founder, CEO & Managing Partner, about the firm’s strategy, potential expansion and exit routes.
In 2015, Proparco, the private sector financing arm of Agence Française de Développement (AFD), earmarked 62% of its financing approvals, approximately €648m, for Africa. These results confirm its strong commitment on the continent, which is in line with the objective set by the French President to provide €20bn of financing to Africa by 2018. Support for renewable energy, tourism and the financial sector, which is essential to finance the local economic base, accounted for the bulk of its operations on the continent. AGF catches up with Jérémie Ceyrac, Deputy Head of Private Equity Division at Proparco, to learn more.
