Private Equity

JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – Aspen Pharmacare Holdings Ltd. is expected to receive final approvals to complete the sale of its milk-formula business within weeks, according to people familiar with the matter, after delays to the deal wiped out more than 30 percent of the South African drugmaker’s market value. New Zealand authorities have indicated that the disposal to French dairy company Lactalis International could be approved this month, said the people, who asked not…

JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – Senior managers at Dimension Data are considering a buyout of some of the South African IT services company’s operations from its owner, Nippon Telegraph & Telephone Corp., according to people familiar with the matter. The executives are approaching lenders and investors to raise cash for a possible deal for Dimension’s Africa and Middle East operations, which could be valued at about $800 million, said the people, asking not to be…

LAGOS (Capital Markers in Africa) – African Rainbow Capital Investments Ltd. is expanding its portfolio outside its home market of South Africa to back businesses in the renewable energy, cold storage and financial-services sectors in West and East Africa. Through its recently-created emerging-markets division, the Johannesburg-based investment firm has entered into partnerships with the African Development Bank and the European Investment Bank to focus on infrastructure projects in the rest of the continent, co-Chief Executive Officer Johan van Zyl said…

JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) South Africa’s Public Investment Corp. rewarded employees with extra pay and bonuses for helping to cover up a culture of mismanagement and corruption at Africa’s biggest money manager, according to the former chief technology officer. While some dysfunction at the top of the PIC dates back to before departed Chief Executive Officer Daniel Matjila succeeded Elias Masilela more than four years ago, the situation got worse afterwards, Luyanda Ntuane said on Tuesday in the…

JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – Clover Industries Ltd. management plans to buy into the business alongside a group of investors that offered 4.8 billion rand ($338 million) to acquire South Africa’s largest publicly traded dairy-products manufacturer. If the transaction goes ahead, the Johannesburg-based company will expand into other African markets, Chief Executive Officer Johann Vorstersaid in a phone interview on Tuesday. A consortium led by Tel Aviv-based Central Bottling Co. offered 25 rand a share for Johannesburg-based Clover…

CAIRO (Capital Markets in Africa) – Private sector business activity in Egypt slowed in February to its lowest level since September 2017, as companies struggled with liquidity and new orders continued to fall, according to an Emirates NBD-Markit survey. The Purchasing Managers Index for the non-oil private sector fell for the sixth consecutive month, to 48.2 from 48.5 in January — well below the 50 mark that signals a growth in business activity. The sustained…

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Research provider Preqin indicated that 1,175 private equity (PE) funds raised a total of $426bn in capital commitments worldwide in 2018, compared to 1,670 PE funds that raised $565.8bn in 2017. Also, it said that 214 buyout funds raised $229bn in 2018, or 53.8% of total capital commitments, followed by 605 venture capital funds with $78.9bn (18.5%) in raised capital, 155 growth funds with $59.1bn (13.9%) in capital commitments,…