Private Equity

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Metro Africa Xpress Inc., a Nigerian transport startup, has raised $31 million to expand its operations and deploy electric vehicles and charging infrastructure across Africa.   The capital raise was led by Lightrock and Global Ventures, a UAE-based international venture capital firm. Max, as the startup is known, plans to expand to Egypt and Ghana in early 2022 before moving to other parts of the continent.  “It is another…

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Moove, a mobility fintech startup, has raised $23 million to provide financing to Uber Technologies Inc. drivers to buy cars across the sub-Saharan Africa region. The funding round, which takes the total capital of Moove to $68.2 million, was led by Speedinvest and U.S.-based Left Lane Capital, with the participation of its existing investor, Emso Asset Management. The company uses data on ride-hailing platforms, such as earnings and performance,…

Family offices, high net worth individuals and wealthy families are increasingly considering private fund structures to hold their investments. While ‘standard’ investment structures like hedge or private equity funds can be ideal for some investors, some HNW investors are looking for options with more flexibility. There are several reasons why a private fund provides an attractive way to hold assets. A private fund can be used for a variety of reasons. It can be a…

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – New sustainability roadmap defines ambitious sustainability targets; group decides on “Science Based Targets” and aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in line with the Paris Climate Agreement; to this end, the Group will invest EUR 7 billion in climate-neutral logistics by 2030; by 2030, 80,000 e-vehicles shall be deployed for last-mile deliveries, resulting in 60% electrification of the fleet; management Board compensation to be linked to new sustainability roadmap;…

(Bloomberg) — A Nigerian court restricted Royal Dutch Shell Plc’s access to its bank accounts in the West African country amid a legal dispute with a local oil producer over a pipeline deal six years ago. Aiteo Eastern E&P Co. Ltd. is demanding billions of dollars in damages, claiming Shell misrepresented the condition of the pipeline and under-counted the volume of crude one of its facilities received from the Nigerian firm, according to court documents…

JOHANNESBURG (Bloomberg) — South Africa’s ports and rail operator, Transnet SOC Ltd., is taking steps to counter adverse weather conditions that have increasingly been interrupting deliveries. Transnet’s freight-rail unit was forced to slow iron ore and manganese deliveries last month because of damage caused by tropical cyclone Eloise, the company said in a statement. Heavy rains scoured away soil at the base of the rail tracks, leading to derailments and line closures, it said. “Increased…

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) — Funding for African startups slowed for the first time after nearly 10 years of growth as investors in the fledgling tech scene were put off by the Covid-19 pandemic, according to venture capital firm Partech Partners. Companies on the continent raised $1.43 billion in 2020, down 29% from a year ago, Partech Partners said in a report. Just two deals above $50 million closed last year compared with 10…