Market Frontiers | Insights on African Investments
Welcome to your one-stop resource for African frontier market insights, analysis and reports on the enormity of the untapped promise hidden within the continent.
Investing in African Solar Power
Inspired Evolution’s Evolution II fund led the latest round of investment into affordable solar power company d.light. The Africa-focused investment advisory firm, who offers a “specialized clean energy infrastructure and resource efficiency investment advisory... read more
Inside One of Africa’s Biggest Private Equity Deals
Boston-headquartered Berkshire Partners has acquired a majority stake in South African data center services provider Teraco Data Environments. Permira, the previous majority owner, will continue to maintain a sizeable stake in the company. While the exact amount... read more
The Soaring Value of African Software Engineers
Andela, the African company building teams of talented engineers from the continent and placing them with companies who need their services, announced in January that they had completed a $100 million Series D round. Generation Investment Management led the round,... read more
Africa’s Notable Private Equity Deals in 2018
Word is getting out about Africa’s immense promise for investors. The continent is ripe with creative entrepreneurs and innovative businesses, creating more great investment opportunities than ever. Private equity contributions have sustained an upwards trajectory for... read more
AHL Venture Partners Makes Unique Infrastructure Play in Africa
Zambia’s Rent to Own concluded a $1.05 million seed round in December 2018. Noted impact investor AHL Venture Partners led the round with a significant investment in the firm, joined by Small Foundation and Serenity Investments. Exact terms of the deal were... read more
DOB Equity Expands Agricultural Portfolio with Kentaste
DOB Equity’s keen eye for investment opportunities in Africa has identified another business. The Dutch impact investor, who has expanded its agricultural assets in recent months, announced in December a mid-sized equity and debt deal that acquires them a “substantial... read more
South Africa-Based Tech Firm, With 500% y-o-y Growth, Closes Series A
Snapt, the Johannesburg-headquartered application delivery controller (ADC), closed a successful Series A round in December. Convergence Partners, Nedbank, and Sanari Capital each contributed to the $3 million in total funding. It is Convergence’s second investment in... read more
Actis Eclipses $4.5 Billion of Investment in Africa, With Over 33 Exits
One of the world’s leading growth market investors, Actis, has successfully exited Compuscan — selling the business to credit reporting giant Experian for $263 million (pending review and approval from South African regulatory officials). Partners Ali... read more
CDC Group Invests $180 Million in Africa’s Digital Infrastructure
UK development finance institution CDC Group has made a $180 million equity investment in Liquid Telecom. The partnership sees CDC receive a 10 percent stake in “Africa’s largest independent fiber and cloud provider” and gain a seat on the company’s board, to be... read more