Africa to be next boomtown for private equity
Friday, 20 Apr 2012
But for private equity firms, with their natural bent toward unlisted companies and longer investment horizons, Africa's hurdles are not insurmountable.
"I tell our investors that I think Africa is still probably the best-kept secret because we continue to make superior returns," John van Wyk, the co-head for Africa at emerging markets private equity firm Actis, told the Reuters Africa Investment Summit this week.
Actis, which also has a presence in Asia and Latin America, is aiming to invest $300 million a year in Africa, with the bulk of that in the continent's biggest economies, South Africa, Egypt and Nigeria.
U.S. firm Carlyle Group LP, which set up shop on the continent last year, is now looking for investments across sub-Saharan African and particularly in Nigeria, its Africa co-head told the Summit.
