African Capital Alliance (ACA) has invested in Filmhouse Cinemas, the fastest growing cinema chain in Nigeria and Film One, its associated film production and distribution company.
Private equity investors are ideal partners to help fund the infrastructure gap in Africa, according to the Southern African Venture Capital and Private Equity Association (SAVCA).
Vantage Capital, Africa’s leading mezzanine funder, has provided R77m ($7.06m) of funding for the acquisition of preferred equity facilities in a Pembani-owned SPV that holds 30% of the ordinary equity and PIK notes in AfriSam.
Fusion Capital has invested in the Kes. 2bn ($22.3m) Meru Greenwood Park in Kenya, an integrated development in the heart of Meru County.
TriLinc Global Impact Fund has recently approved $2.8m in two trade finance facilities to companies in South Africa.
Kusuntu Partners has launched a service for linking up the Africa focused private equity funds and investors to Africa small and growing businesses that are looking for growth and expansion capital.
The value of global private equity deals targeting Africa has more than doubled (137%) in the first half of 2014 compared to the same period last year, according to research by global law firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer.
The AfricInvest Group has first closed its multi-sector private equity fund AfricInvest Fund III with a size exceeding €154m ($194.83m) in capital commitments.
Gulf Capital, an alternative asset manager in the Middle East, has invested $25m in Amak Group, a provider of integrated petroleum services for the onshore and offshore sectors in Egypt.
Private equity and the growth of pension funds provide a massive opportunity to finance investment in Africa, industry experts have said.
Acumen, a non-profit global venture fund, together with Novastar Ventures, have announced a €2m ($2.5m) equity investment in SolarNow, an Uganda-based company that sells modular high quality solar home systems to rural populations across the country.
The private equity asset class in South Africa continues to deliver a sturdy performance with funs yielding an annualised rate of return of 18.6% over the ten years to the end of June 2014, according to the latest RisCura-SAVCA South African Private Equity Performance Report. Ten-year returns decreased slightly compared with those measured during the previous quarter, as some of the firm gains made during the period of strong economic growth of the early 2000s, when returns averaged 37.9%, begin to have less significance.
The Abraaj Group has acquired a majority stake in Liberty Star Consumer Holdings, one of the largest unlisted food and personal care manufacturers in South Africa, for an undisclosed sum.
LeapFrog Investments has sold its minority stake in Apollo Investments to Swiss Re.
