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. CDC commits $100m to agricultural group
CDC Group, the UK’s development finance institution and impact investor, has announced a $100 million debt commitment to ETG, an agricultural conglomerate connecting smallholder farmers to global markets through its operations in 48 countries worldwide. The debt commitment will support the growth of ETG’s food and agriculture business, and it will help ETG strengthen food value chains by expanding its logistic networks, boosting agriculture yields and the production of staple foods such as grains, rice and cocoa.
ETG has long standing relationships with over 550,000 smallholder farmers across Africa. It helps to significantly improve their livelihoods by providing consistent future demand for their produce through access to regional and global markets; this enables their business to grow and ultimately improve their way of life. Operating a two-way logistics model, ETG drops fertilisers at the farmgate – improving crop quality – and then picks up the farmers’ produce to sell on the global market. ETG also provides warehousing and distribution centres giving farmers flexibility to store and sell their produce at the optimal time, thereby increasing their income potential substantially.
2. 8 Miles completes exit of Uganda’s Orient Bank
8 Miles, a pan-African private equity firm, is exiting Orient Bank after a six-year holding period having first backed the company in 2015. The deal was structured through 8 Miles Fund I.
I&M Holdings Plc signed an agreement in July 2020 to acquire 90% shareholding of Orient Bank from 8 Miles and other sellers, including the founders. The acquisition was completed on 30 April 2021 after receiving the necessary approvals from the Central Bank of Kenya, Bank of Uganda, Capital Markets Authority of Kenya and the COMESA Competition Authority.
3. Kasada to acquire hospitality complex in Namibia
Kasada Hospitality Fund LP, advised by Kasada Capital Management, an investment platform dedicated to the hotel industry in sub-Saharan Africa, announced the acquisition of the Safari Hotels & Conference Centre, in Windhoek, Namibia. This transaction remains subject to the approval of the Namibian Competition Commission.
The hotel complex is strategically located within ten minutes from downtown Windhoek and adjacent to Eros Airport. It consists of the 215-room Safari Court Hotel; the 199-room Safari Hotel; and Namibia’s main venue for meetings, conferences and exhibitions, the Safari Conference Centre which includes a large 1,600 m2 reception hall that can accommodate up to 2,400 delegates.
4. Impact fund invests in Ghana’s XpressGas
Impact investment fund I&P Afrique Entrepreneurs (IPAE) 2, managed by Investisseurs & Partenaires, has invested in Ghanaian company XpressGas, a distributor of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG).
XpressGas is the tenth company funded by the IPAE 2 fund.
5. Tamela Mezzanine Debt Fund I signs more capital commitments
Independent South African-based fund manager, Tamela Capital Partners, a subsidiary of Tamela Holdings, has during the last year raised more capital to increase its capital committed to the Tamela Capital Mezzanine Debt Fund 1 to R620 million (about $44 million).
The Tamela Fund recently concluded its first investment providing mezzanine capital for growth to Retail Capital, a company that provides small business with innovative working capital solutions.
The Tamela Fund aims to finance mid-market companies who wish to grow their businesses, enter new markets and accelerate growth through expanding operations or consummating strategic acquisitions. The fund provides capital ranging from R50 million (about $3.6 million) to R150 million (about $10.7 million) per investee company.
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