Kingdom Holding Company and PineBridge Investments Middle East Establish a Joint Venture in Africa

http://www.pinebridge.com/pdfs/press_releases/pinebridgekingdomholdingpressrelease.pdf

Kingdom Holding Company

http://www.kingdom.com.sa/

"Kingdom Holding Company

 The World’s Foremost Value Investor

Welcome to the online home of Kingdom Holding Company – one of the world’s most successful diversified investment holding companies. Based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Kingdom Holding Company (KHC) is a publicly listed company on the Tadawul (Saudi Stock Exchange). KHC is comprised of a select team of experienced investment specialists directed by HRH Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal, one of the world’s leading investors.

KHC is internationally renowned for its interest in both high performance global brands and strategic regional interests. The company utilizes detailed selection criteria to identify optimum opportunities to invest and realize value from undervalued or underperforming assets nationally and internationally, appreciating potential for the long term. 

 

Investments

Kingdom Holding Company – The Home of Investment

The KHC investment strategy is to identify and support “best of the best” enterprises around the world. We employ detailed selection criteria to maximize long-term returns for shareholders and joint venture partners, and employ an astute approach to realize investment potential in addition to identifying potential assets that are typically undervalued or underperforming, locally and globally through our sound investment strategy.

Through this approach KHC has cemented its position as one of the world’s foremost value investors.

But the real strength of the overall KHC portfolio lies in sector diversity. We have major interests in investment categories ranging from luxury hotels and real estate to media and publishing, entertainment, finance and investment services, social media and technology, consumer and retail, petrochemicals, education, private equities, health care, aviation, – even agriculture. KHC is among the world’s largest and most diverse investors, with regional and international holdings in many key industries. We are recognized as one of the largest foreign investors in the United States. We are also active in Africa, an emerging market and growing economic power offering nearly limitless potential.

KHC regularly extends its portfolio to include new opportunities. Current holdings shown do not define the limits of the company’s investment ambitions...."

 

Amethis Finance

http://www.amethisfinance.com/news/amethis-finance-successfully-mobilizes-usd-530-million-for-african-entrepreneurs/

"Amethis Finance successfully mobilizes USD 530 million for African Entrepreneurs

Amethis Finance, the private investment fund dedicated to long-term responsible investments in Africa, founded in partnership between Luc Rigouzzo, Laurent Demey, and the Edmond de Rothschild Group through Compagnie Benjamin de Rothschild Conseil “CBR”, successfully reached its final close in June 2014, mobilizing USD 530 million. Amethis has been able to attract an unprecedented number of private investors for an African fund, being financial institutions but also European and US family offices.

A unique community of long-term entrepreneurs and private investors for Africa

Amethis realizes one of the biggest fundraising ever for a first-time investment fund dedicated to Africa showing increasing interest of US and European investors for the continent. Amethis’ unique shareholding structure is composed of 55 investors of which only 3 are state owned while most of the investment funds dedicated to Africa have been financed by development finance institutions (DFI) so far. Amethis has managed to bring to Africa European, US and African institutions, together with close to 40 European and US entrepreneurs and family offices.

The capacity to build a bridge between European and US private investors and successful African Entrepreneurs

Amethis has a unique shareholding structure: mixing classical institutional investors (banks, insurance companies, fund of fund…) with successful private entrepreneurs from the manufacturing and services sectors who are investing often for the first time in Africa and are looking to know better the continent. Amethis considers its investors as potential shareholders and business partners for the companies it invests in. Amethis assists its investors in their expansion, notably through co-investments. Indeed, Amethis aims to capitalize on its network to identify and to harness strategies between its diversified investor pool and its local partners.

A business model suited for the continent’s needs and differentiated from same-sized traditional funds investing in the continent

Africa is going through a rapid and dramatic change, thanks to its demographics and fast urbanization. Economic models are rapidly changing, with consumer and retail oriented companies taking advantage of those evolutions. This rapid growth is creating significant capital needs for local companies, and Amethis’ strategy is to foster long-term ties with well-established, high-growth African businesses which need long-term capital, and supporting them through a new phase of their life cycle. Amethis is helping them to develop, first in their own national space, then in their regional space

To do so, Amethis has developed an investment strategy adapted to the African needs and specificities:
- Amethis is particularly positioned on Africa’s bottlenecks areas supporting urbanization and consumer growth: financial services, retail, agri-business, energy…
- Amethis is focused on countries with a large domestic market and a diversified economy (i.e. countries in transition).
- Amethis is one of the only player to provide its clients with traditional equity and flexible long-term debt, a mix adapted to its clients’ needs.
- Amethis only takes minority stakes, which is well suited for family-owned businesses.
- Finally, Amethis is characterized by its long-term horizon.

A quick start with already five investments completed so far

A year and a half after its first closing, Amethis has already made 5 investments, in fast perfoming companies in Kenya, Ghana, Cote d’Ivoire and Mauritius, in banking, oil and gas retail distribution and logistics. Amethis is supporting the rapid changes in the African retail banking industry, pushed by innovative local banks creating new marketing and distribution models. It has already partnered with the two fastest growing banks in Kenya and Ghana, respectively Chase Bank and Fidelity Bank, who are transforming their respective banking industries. It is supporting in Côte d’Ivoire the quick rise in gas consumption, investing in the local champion, Pétroivoire. In the Indian Ocean, it backs the rise of Mauritius as the regional logistics hub through the regional leader, Velogic.

A fruitful partnership with Compagnie Benjamin de Rothschild Conseil

The fruitful alliance with CBR is grounded on the proven know-how of Amethis Finance founders in sustainable development in Africa and the credibility of the Edmond the Rothschild Group. Amethis founders are a team of bankers and Private Equity investors, specialized in Africa and the Mediterranean, who have devoted their careers to private equity and long-term lending on the African continent. They share the same long-term investment vision as the Rothschild family which have granted to CBR a mission to promote innovative investment schemes in partnerships with highly recognized investment professionals. Over the last ten years CBR has developed a recognized environmental and social expertise, notably with its investment funds platform, covering traditional strategies and focusing on Impact Finance, Environment and Infrastructure, in developed markets and frontier markets.

Luc Rigouzzo, Managing Partner at Amethis comments: “The success of this fundraising, demonstrates the appetite of private European and US entrepreneurs and family offices to invest in Africa, the next world frontier for growth, and their conviction that our patient and responsible business model is well adapted to the needs of the continent.”

Laurent Demey, Managing Partner at Amethis, adds “African entrepreneurs are shaping Africa’s future at a key moment in the continent history. Amethis role and objective is to support them in all possible ways: money, of course, but also value addition, international network and recognition through our very specific business model and shareholder base.”

Johnny El Hachem, Chief Executive Officer of Compagnie Benjamin de Rothschild Conseil adds: “We were convinced that Amethis was the right team for this partnership, with whom we share the same vision of long-term responsible investment in Africa. It is at the core of the Edmond de Rothschild Group to partner with talented professionals on ambitious and innovative projects.
_ _ _
For further information, please contact:
❖ Amethis Finance
Luc Rigouzzo (luc.rigouzzo@amethisfinance.com)
Laurent Demey (Laurent.demey@amethisfinance.com)
❖ Compagnie Benjamin de Rothschild Conseil (Edmond de Rothschild Group)
Johnny El Hachem (jelhachem@ctbr.ch)
About Amethis Finance
Amethis Finance is a financial institution dedicated to Sub-Saharan Africa, initiated in December 2012 by Luc Rigouzzo and Laurent Demey, respectively former CEO an Deputy CEO of Proparco, subsidiary of the French Development Agency, in partnership with the Compagnie Benjamin de Rothschild.

Amethis Finance is a “one stop shop” which provides all long-term financial instruments (long-term debt, equity and quasi equity investment), with high standards and objectives in terms of development, social and governance criteria.

Amethis positions itself as a long term investors with the aim of supporting private companies in the consolidation of their competitive positioning, domestic and regional expansion as well as implementation of long term strategic plan. After an intermediary close at 185MUSD, Amethis has closed its fund raising at 530MUSD.

About the Edmond de Rothschild Group
Founded in 1953 by Baron Edmond de Rothschild and presided over since 1997 by Baron Benjamin de Rothschild, the Edmond de Rothschild Group specialises in Asset Management and Private Banking. At 31 December 2013 the Group had €133.6 billion of assets under management and nearly 2800 employees spread across 31 offices, branches and subsidiaries throughout the world. In addition to its core businesses of Asset Management and Private Banking, the Group is also active in Corporate Finance, Private Equity and Fund Administration.

Compagnie Benjamin de Rothschild Conseil is a subsidiary dedicated to innovative project funds and sustainable finance through private equity...."

Greylock Africa Opportunity Fund

Greylock Africa Opportunity Fund

Up to $200m
Pan-Africa

• Corporate
• Mezzanine
• Convertible and sovereign debt
• As well as private equity investments in various industries including
• Telecommunications
• Finance and banking
• Agribusiness
• Tourism
• Real estate
• Natural resources
• Energy

http://greylockcapital.com/

8 Miles

"8 Miles is a private equity firm focused exclusively on making private equity investments in Africa. We invest in consumer-driven businesses and service providers with strong growth prospects. We look to partner with leading entrepreneurs and management teams, and work with them to achieve shared objectives by providing capital and operational expertise. A core part of our strategy is active ownership - actively participating in transforming businesses in which we invest. We are "hands on" investors in Africa.

At 8 Miles we have a complementary team of principals with significant experience in private equity and direct experience in successfully managing and transforming businesses in Africa. All our principals have extensive experience in developed and emerging economies, and therefore have a deep insight into the unique opportunities and challenges that Africa presents. We seek to achieve superior capital returns and accelerate the development of African companies by delivering lasting operational improvement.

Typically, we place between US$15 million and US$45 million in each investment that we make. Whilst we look at opportunities from growth equity to more complex buyouts, our strategy is essentially quite simple. We invest in African businesses and sectors with high growth prospects, and enhance performance by implementing our "active ownership" approach to manage the investment. We believe the combination of careful selection and hands-on involvement leads to better performance.

We work with highly motivated entrepreneurs and managers and ensure all stakeholder interests are completely aligned. We aim to take majority or influential minority positions in companies, and work closely with like-minded stakeholders to devise and implement operational changes to the business. Some of these changes appear straightforward - management controls, proper training and incentivisation, alignment of interests, analytically-driven decision making, and so forth - but they help ensure that the companies we work with have a competitive advantage relative to their peer group.

Our collective experience in Africa has taught us that value creation requires the key discipline to do simple things well; applying proven best practice and transferring skills, rather than re-inventing the wheel. Our "active ownership" philosophy integrates governance and operational change programmes. By leveraging our operational expertise, we look to create market leading African businesses. This leads to sustainable growth and value creation for all stakeholders.

8 Miles has identified target geographies and sectors where its investment approach can be best implemented. We focus on countries with strong macroeconomic fundamentals, good governance, a favourable regime for foreign investors, and a track record of private sector reforms which make doing business easier.

8 Miles focuses on consumer driven businesses and service providers with strong growth prospects. Typical sectors which we consider include:

• Agribusiness
• Business and Financial Services
• Consumer Goods and Retail
• Energy and Utilities
• Healthcare and Pharmaceutical
• Hospitality and Real Estate
• Telecom, Media and Technology
• Transport and Logistics

http://www.8miles.com/index.php 

Plena Group

"Plena Group was founded as a Swedish family investment company in 1980. We are now an investment house based in Luxembourg that mainly focuses on Emerging Markets.

Plena has over the years operated companies in several countries in mature as well as developing and early stage markets. We have held assets in most sectors of industry and commerce. Plena Group focuses on emerging markets such as MENA, Africa and the Far East in industries such as Construction, Energy, Finance and Venture Capital.

Our sustained success results from fostering an entrepreneurial mind-set amongst our managers, employing cautious financial policies, managing investments actively as well as committing to the enterprises over a longer period. Typical investment size ranges from EUR 500 thousand up to EUR 20 million.

At Plena we deploy capital depending on the investment opportunity:

• Controlling stakes: Plena generally takes the lead role in managing and developing businesses within the industries we operate.
• Minority stakes and/or listed SME companies: Plena collaborates with management and can take a supervisory position.
• Asset Backed Lending and/or convertible loans: Plena aims to, on a selective basis and with strong collateral and underlying enterprises, grow this area of its portfolio.

Plena Group is always looking for investment opportunities which fit our criteria. We hope you will find a potential partnership with PLENA a compelling proposition and look forward to hearing from you...."

http://www.plena-group.com/ 

Omidyar Network

"At Omidyar Network, we start from a fundamental belief: People are inherently capable, but they often lack opportunity. We believe if we invest in people, through opportunity, they will create positive returns for themselves, their families, and the world at large.

We also believe that businesses can be a powerful force for good. Pierre Omidyar experienced this firsthand as the founder of eBay. Just as eBay created the opportunity for millions of people to start their own businesses, we believe market forces can be a potent driver for positive social change. That’s why we invest in both for-profit businesses and nonprofit organizations, whose complementary roles can advance entire sectors.

Starting from the premise that people are basically good, Pierre created a platform that gave everyone equal access to information, opportunity, and the tools to pursue their goals. 

  Omidyar Network invests in entrepreneurs who share our commitment to advancing social good at the pace and scale the world needs today. We are focused on five key areas we believe are building blocks for prosperous, stable, and open societies: Consumer Internet and Mobile, Education, Financial Inclusion, Government Transparency, and Property Rights.

We take calculated risks in the earliest stages of innovation, helping to transform promising ideas into successful ventures. As an active impact investor, we offer more than just financial support. We provide vital human capital capabilities, from serving on boards to consulting on strategy, coaching executives to recruiting new talent. We connect promising investees to entrepreneurial visionaries with business know-how. We also leverage the tremendous capacity of Web and mobile technologies to go beyond incremental improvement and make a significant, widespread impact.

Understanding the scale and importance of this work, we don’t undertake the challenge alone. The most powerful force for change lies in our connection with others: business, government, nonprofits, and individual partners. Together, we can use our resources to transform scarcity into abundance and put enduring opportunity within reach of more people worldwide...."

 http://www.omidyar.com/who-we-are

MBO Capital Management

"Our Business

MBO Capital is a private equity firm that invests in small to medium-sized companies across a chosen range of industry sectors. Our firm provides early stage and expansion capital to companies that want to accelerate growth and build exceptional shareholder value in partnership with an experienced and knowledgeable investor.

At MBO Capital, we believe that private equity investment is the most viable source of not only the much needed financial capital for small to medium-sized companies, but also the human resource and value add expertise to strengthen management capacity. By providing early stage and expansion capital to these companies, we enable them to accelerate growth and build exceptional value. We also leverage on our local experience to provide strategic and management support to these companies, enhancing their post-investment value and earning superior returns for our investors.

MBO Capital's uniqueness in this regard is in the expertise of its team whose knowledge of the local business environment and extensive network of contacts both within Nigeria and other Anglophone West African countries is enviable.

We also take great pride in our management professionalism and integrity.

Our Focus

Our goal is to assist all our clients to build sustainable businesses through our investment of both financial and intellectual capital. We are committed to supporting entrepreneurs across Anglophone West Africa who own businesses that are both viable and have a proven track record. Over the next 10 years we plan to invest over US$250m in unlisted small to medium sized companies operating across a number of sectors with our prime focus sectors being Energy, FMCG, Technology and Financial Services sectors...."

https://www.mbocapital.com/about-mbo/ 

Alitheia

"Alitheia invests in companies that are leveraging innovative business models to address the needs of the working class in a sustainable manner. In general, we look for early to growth stage companies operating in Nigeria or other West African countries, backed by strong management teams, with high growth potential. Our target investment sectors include financial services, clean energy and housing...."

 http://www.thealitheia.com/

Afric Invest

AfricInvest was founded in 1994 and is part of Integra Group, an investment and financial services company based in Tunisia.

Uniquely positioned as one of the most experienced private equity investors on the continent, AfricInvest has dedicated investment teams focused on North Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa, and employs 50 professionals based in six offices.

AfricInvest manages USD750 million across 13 funds and benefits from strong, long-term support from both local and international investors, including leading development finance institutions in the United States and Europe.

Having co-founded the African Venture Capital Association (AVCA) as well as the Middle East North Africa Private Equity Association (MENAPEA) and the Euromed Capital Forum, the firm is an active promotor of the private equity industry in the region.

Since 1994, AfricInvest has invested in 112 companies across 24 African countries in a variety of high growth sectors and maintains a broad network of high quality executives across Africa, offering extensive expertise in key growth industries, including financial services, agribusiness, consumer/retail, education and healthcare...."

 http://www.africinvest.com/

Adenia Partners

"At a glance

2002	Adenia Partners founded
2003	First fund, Adenia Capital, established with committed capital of €10 million (fully invested)
2007	Second fund, Adenia Capital (II), established with €37 million in capital commitments (fully invested)
2012	Third fund, Adenia Capital (III), established with €96 million in capital commitments.

The journey to building your own business is a long – and often lonely – one.

We know how tough the road is, because we have walked it ourselves. Our team of successful entrepreneurs founded Adenia Partners in 2002 to put this knowledge to fruitful use.

We have built a fellowship of business leaders who, like us, pursue an ethos of excellence through hard work and humility. By interacting and sharing resources, our business leaders make so much more of the capital invested.

We have deployed our investments though three funds, launched respectively in 2003, 2007 and 2012, across a range of sectors including, but not limited to, agribusiness, manufacturing, financial services, ICT and telecommunications, and finally tourism and hospitality. You can view our portfolio here.

We invest in companies based in West Africa and the Indian Ocean region. Visit us at our offices in Antananarivo, Port Louis, Accra, and Abidjan...."

http://www.adenia.com/ 

Kagiso Tiso Holdings

"Investment Approach

KTH (through its legacy companies KTI and Tiso), boasts a track record of investment performance and creating long term sustainable shareholder value. Historically, the group’s impeccable BEE credentials allowed them to partner with strong companies (as an empowerment partner) and assisted those companies to create wealth for all shareholders. As a result, KTH currently has a portfolio of investments comprising market leading companies across key sectors. With the creation of KTH, the group is now poised to leverage this experience to become a leading investment company across Africa.

KTH focusses on investing in companies in specific sectors with strong, involved management teams. We aspire to become active shareholders of reference in our portfolio companies, through participation at board level and the various sub-committees. These companies are generally, high growth or cash generative and meet our investment criteria of inter alia generating market related returns for KTH. We maintain a long term horizon and can therefore partner with companies through-out cycles without any pressure to exit.

KTH sees the African continent at its primary market and will seek to manage a portfolio spanning across various sectors on the continent.

We adhere to the strictest code of ethical and professional conduct as an organization and ensure that through our participation in various corporate governance structures of our investee companies, the highest standards of corporate governance are adhered to. KTH believes it can be a catalyst for the transformation of our society by assisting to drive a broad based transformation agenda in our portfolio companies. We are equally proud of the charitable work and social agenda of our key shareholders and seek to invest in companies that share these values..."

http://www.kagiso.com/about.php

Tamela Holdings

"Tamela Holdings (Pty) Ltd (Tamela) is a black owned and managed investment company established by Vusi Mahlangu and Sydney Mhlarhi. Tamela has two major business units, being Principal Investments and Corporate Finance Advisor.

Investment Philosophy

To create long term strategic partnerships with investee companies by acquiring significant minority to majority shareholdings.  Tamela seeks to foster a partnership with management and shareholders to add value and grow the business.

Tamela's investment focus is in the manufacturing, industrial and financial services sectors but would invest in other sectors where the companies have strong management and market presence

Tamela includes in its transactions broad based groups in line with the principles of broad based black empowerment including, where possible, employee share ownership schemes.

Investment Criteria

Tamela will target companies that have most of the following characteristics:

• strong corporate or product reputation;
• strong resilience to economic downturns and competitive pressures;
• strong cash generating ability; and
• proven management team.

Tamela will, however, not invest in:

• distressed or turnaround companies;
• primary agriculture; and
• mining exploration...."

http://www.tamela.co.za/index.html 

Tana Africa Capital

Tana Africa Capital is an Africa-focused investment company founded by E. Oppenheimer & Son International Ltd and Temasek. Through the medium of capital and business building support, Tana aims to build African business institutions for generations to come. In doing so, Tana is able to draw on the rich heritage, vast experience and extensive networks of its founding shareholders as well as the on-the-ground African knowledge and operating experience of its management team. Like its namesake, Ethiopia’s Lake Tana (the source of the Blue Nile), Tana aims to serve as a fount of development, leaving an enduring, tangible and positive legacy on the businesses which it supports.

Investment Approach

Tana’s investment approach is predicated on the following three core principles:

Active Investment Management

Tana is an active, value orientated investor that engages positively and in a collaborative fashion with the boards and management of the companies in which it invests. Tana prioritises the institutionalisation of business practices such as business leadership, financial discipline, operational excellence and sound corporate governance. In doing so, it is able to draw on its investment team’s deep experience in strategy and operations across Africa.

Long-Term Investment Focus

The value-adding, partnership approach is supported by the fact that Tana limits the number of companies in which it invests, focusing its efforts on companies that can serve as platforms for domestic and regional expansion. Developing such enduring businesses will, at times, require the adoption of lengthy investment time horizons. The flexibility that Tana has in terms of investment holding periods originates from the fact that it has been established as an evergreen investment company and has as its founding shareholders investors that have achieved great success from eschewing the short termism that dominates much of the investment world.

Clear Sector Focus

Tana’s investment activities are focused on two primary sectors: Consumer and Agriculture. This clear sector focus brings with it deep industry expertise and extensive networks, greatly enhancing the positive impact that Tana can have on the companies in which it invests. 

Focus Sectors and Investment Criteria

Tana invests between US$20 million and US$75 million to acquire significant minority or control equity positions in established businesses across Africa that operate within the Consumer and Agriculture sectors.

Consumer Focus

Companies well positioned to meet the consumption needs of Africa’s young, energetic and growing population are core to Tana’s Consumer sector focus. There is tremendous economic and social value in satisfying the food, beverage and personal care consumer good needs of the African populace, providing the building materials required to house the growing number of households, and offering the logistical support needed to produce and deliver these goods.

Within the Consumer sector, Tana focuses its efforts on:

• Food, beverage and personal care fast moving consumer goods
• Building materials
• Retail
• Logistics

We also consider select opportunities in Consumer Financial Services, Media, Healthcare and Education.

Agriculture Focus

Africa, which has the largest reservoir of undeveloped arable land in the world, will play a pivotal role in the decades ahead in ensuring that the food requirements of a rapidly growing world population are met. Tana will be there to support the development of the crucial Agriculture sector, investing along the agricultural value chain from agricultural inputs (fertilizer, crop protection and equipment) to downstream opportunities in processing, storage and logistics.

Investment Criteria

Tana has a preference for companies operating in these sectors that have the following characteristics:

• Talented and visionary entrepreneur/majority shareholder/management team
• Large, addressable and rapidly growing market
• Minimal public sector dependency
• Attractive industry structure with proven, profitable and sustainable business model
• Highly scalable business with standardised and repeatable processes
• Internal expansion opportunities, as well as potential for add-on acquisitions
• Distinct competitive advantage driving strong market position
• Clearly identifiable and implementable levers for value creation
• Appropriate corporate governance

The Abraaj Group

The Abraaj Group has accumulated more than two decades of investment experience in global growth markets across six regions. Our typical equity transactions range between US$ 10 million and US$ 100 million. - See more at: http://www.abraaj.com/our-approach/private-equity#sthash.lekA9YoD.dpuf

The Abraaj Group has accumulated more than two decades of investment experience in global growth markets across six regions. Our typical equity transactions range between US$ 10 million and US$ 100 million. - See more at: http://www.abraaj.com/our-approach/private-equity#sthash.lekA9YoD.dpuf

Over the past ten years we have made 200 investments in 50 countries, giving us significant breadth and reach. We have applied the learnings from these investments to identify and follow global best practices and to hone our portfolio management and investment skills. - See more at: http://www.abraaj.com/our-approach/private-equity#sthash.lekA9YoD.dpuf

WDB Investment Holdings

"WDBIH is a private enterprise formed in 1996 with an overarching purpose of making a difference in the lives of rural women and communities. The main beneficiary and shareholder in WDBIH is the WDB Trust. The WDB Trust focuses on the social and economic upliftment of rural women and households, principally by providing micro-enterprise credit and business skills training to aspiring female entrepreneurs. The WDB Trust and  the micro-finance programme was established in 1991.

Our key investment objectives are to:

• Make equity investments in established and growing businesses
• Build a sizeable capital base for our constituency
• Generate regular cash flows for the WDB Trust
• Have meaningful operational and strategic influence in our investments
• Achieve sustainable returns in our investments
• Establish long term partnerships and relationships
• Drive sustainable transformation within our investments with regards to women representation in executive roles, employment equity, skills development and procurement from small businesses

Investment Mandate

WDBIH’s mandate is to grow its portfolio of investments as well as generate sufficient cash flow in order repatriate dividends through to the WDB Trust to fund its programmes. WDBIH has equity investments in key sectors in South Africa including industrials, life insurance, banks, oil and gas, real estate, media and basic resources. WDBIH’s mandate is to further diversify and grow its portfolio by investing in key strategic sectors in SA.

WDBIH adds strategic value in its investments through board representation, facilitating women empowerment and skills transfer, working with our corporate partners in their enterprise development initiatives.

Investment Criteria

• Targeted sectors: Food and Agriculture, Residential and Commercial Property, Media & Telecoms and Technology, Education, Renewable Energy/Utilities, Healthcare and Pharmaceuticals, Retail, FMCG and Diversified Industries.
• Target equity returns: WDBIH seeks to make equity investments in growth businesses that generate cash, and seek market and sector related IRR’s.
• Investment horizon: We maintain long term investment horizons, taking a longer strategic view of our investments, through various cycles, without the pressure of an exit.
• Investee company profile: We invest in businesses with growth, strong cash generative ability and healthy dividend flow.
• Efficient use of capital: We seek to maximize our capital return by reducing our cost of capital, through a combination of debt (including vendor and third party funding) and own equity.
• Investment level: we seek to hold all our investments at holding company or group level...."

 http://wdbinvestments.co.za/

Development Partners International

"Development Partners International LLP (DPI) is the investment adviser to ADP I, a private equity fund that invests across Africa.

Our focus is on companies benefiting from the fast-growing emerging middle class. We work throughout Africa and see the benefits of investing in the fast-growing and newly liberalising countries in Africa.

Our Focus

We expect the fund to invest in a wide variety of companies across the continent, with a view towards not concentrating on any one country, region or industry. We have a focus on companies that provide products and services for the fast-emerging African middle class, which we believe offer the most compelling investment profiles.

These include, but are not limited to the following industries: financial services, fast moving consumer goods, pharmaceutical and health and housing. We also expect the fund to take advantage of strategic opportunities with significant upside, including, among others, resource-based businesses to take advantage of Africa’s oil, natural gas and mineral riches.

Where We Invest

ADP I can invest throughout Africa, with a focus on increasing investments in the fast-growing post-conflict and newly liberalising African countries.

Our Criteria for Investment

We consider profitable or cash-flow positive companies which are growing either organically or through acquisitions, or partnering with established corporations expanding into new regions in Africa. They should offer ADP I the ability to exit over the lifetime of the investment.

The companies’ management must be experienced, and committed to transparency; with a clear corporate strategy designed to create value for shareholders...."

http://www.dpi-llp.com/ 

Capitalworks

"Capitalworks is an independent alternative asset management firm based in South Africa providing investment access and specialist solutions to its clients across a wide range of industries and investment themes in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Capitalworks manages more than US$515m for a diverse range of domestic and international investors..."

http://www.capitalworksip.com/index_web.html

Zico

"Strategic Focus

Our growth strategy shall be realised through participation in established companies whose strengths are measurable and that will contribute to future wealth maximisation, within the following sectors:

• Automotive (motor retail and allied services)
• Operational services, which include specialised security, cleaning, laundry, hygiene, pest control and fumigation
• Media and advertising
• Human capital recruitment, training and development
• Financial services
• Infrastructure and manufacturing
• Mining and resources
• Alternative energy

Investments outside the above areas will be considered if they provide lucrative returns and provided we can add real and meaningful value in nurturing and growing such investments. Excluded in our investment mandate are sectors where there is a lack of clear competitive advantage or where we do not see ourselves adding significant value over the investment period.

Transactions that Zico will participate in include:

• Joint ventures
• The acquisition of strategic equity interests
• Privatisation, restructuring or unbundling initiatives
• The provision of expansion capital, replacement capital or acquisition capital
• Management buy-outs and leveraged buy-ins..."

http://www.zico.co.za/pages/Default.aspx

Thebe Investment Corporation

"Founded in 1992 as a pioneering black-owned company, Thebe Investment Corporation (Thebe) is one of South Africa’s leading investment companies, managing assets of over R6 billion. Thebe is a unique entrepreneurial company that does not exist only to make a profit, but is driven by a commitment to serve the broader interests of the community.

Our investment portfolio spans tourism, mining resources, infrastructure, renewable energy, petrochemicals, telecommunications, financial services, and healthcare. We actively work to promote mutually beneficial economic partnerships by investing in or developing businesses that create value for our stakeholders through the origination, execution, and prudent management of our investments...."

 http://www.thebe.co.za/