The 5 most popular stories on Africa Private Equity News this week
Here are summaries of the five most widely read stories this week on Africa Private Equity News.
1. Cathay AfricInvest Innovation Fund announces final close at €110m
AfricInvest, a multi-asset investment platform in Africa, and global venture capital firm Cathay Innovation, have completed the final close of their joint pan-African venture fund, Cathay AfricInvest Innovation Fund (CAIF), at €110 million. The fund is backed by LPs such as EIB, AfricaGrow, FMO, Bpifrance, Triodos Investment Management, Proparco, SIFEM and BIO, among others.
With the close of the fund, the CAIF team will significantly deepen their focus on investing in the most promising early to growth-stage start-ups improving African lives with disruptive tech-enabled products and services. With initial cheque sizes ranging from €1-10 million for growth-stage and up to €1 million for select seed-stage tickets, the fund invests in start-ups across multiple sectors, including fintech, mobility, healthtech, edtech, AI, digital content and agtech. Since its inception in October 2019, CAIF has backed 10 prominent companies operating across the continent, including 54gene, OZÉ, Migo, PalmPay, Heetch, KaiOS, Boomplay, Aerobotics, and WhereIsMyTransport. Most recently, the fund co-led Tunisia-based edtech startup GoMyCode’s $8 million series A round.
2. Actis to exit Lekela Power
Actis and Mainstream, the global wind and solar company, have signed an agreement to sell the Lekela platform to Infinity Group and AFC, subject to regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions.
Established in 2015 to deliver clean, reliable energy across Africa, Lekela has become the African continent’s largest pure play renewable energy independent power producer (IPP). The platform consists of over 1 GW of fully operational wind assets, including five operational wind farms in South Africa (624MW), one operational wind farm in Egypt (252MW), one operational wind farm in Senegal (159MW) as well as development opportunities in Ghana, Senegal and Egypt.
The platform was established as part of a joint venture between Actis (60%), and a Mainstream-led consortium called Mainstream Renewable Power Africa Holdings (MRPAH) (40%). The planned exit reflects the successful culmination of their partnership strategy for Lekela, following a comprehensive value creation approach.
3. Egypt: FMO commits $10m to Algebra Ventures
FMO, the Dutch entrepreneurial development bank, has invested $10 million in Egyptian venture capital firm Algebra Ventures’ second fund.
Announced in April 2021, Algebra Ventures’ second fund invests in technology start-ups in Egypt with an allocation for the wider Middle East and Africa region. Other investing partners include the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).
4. Imperial gets approval for 100% acquisition of logistics operator; Carlyle and Ethos to exit
South African logistics and market access company Imperial, owned by DP World, announced that all the requirements relating to its 100% acquisition of J&J Group, the largest integrated logistics operator on Mozambique’s Beira corridor, have now been fulfilled. Funds managed by Carlyle and Ethos Private Equity were previously controlling shareholders of J&J Group.
The transaction relating to the acquisition of the first tranche of shares (51%) of the J&J Group, which was announced on 29 July 2021, was closed on 18 July 2022. This will be followed by the acquisitions of the second and third tranches of 46.5% and 2.5%, respectively.
5. Burkina Faso: Investment firm makes its first exit
Sinergi Burkina, an investment company in Burkina Faso created by Investisseurs & Partenaires (I&P), has announced that it is exiting its investment in Agroserv Industrie, a company specialising in the processing of maize.
Agroserv Industrie – formalised in 2008 by Siaka Sanon, who took over the family activities – has two entirely automated production lines, each producing 50 tonnes/day.
Get the most from the Africa Private Equity News app by registering a free account. Go to the app home screen and tap the round orange icon in the top-right of your screen.