January 8th, 2018
The  weekly roundup of Africa's Private Capital news

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Happy New Year. We at Africa Capital Digest extend our wishes for a prosperous 2018 to all our readers. 

Here's the year's first weekly preview edition of the most interesting Africa-related private equity, infrastructure and venture capital deal stories, market opinion articles and information pieces. 
 
Many thanks for being a reader.  I'd encourage you to join our growing cohort of paid subscribers for 2018.  Becoming a paid subscriber will give you immediate access to all the full stories in this week's edition as well as to those in all previous editions. The process is quick and simple and provides you with the flexibility of signing up for a year or on a month-by-month basis. You can choose from one of the following options below:
 
Annual all digital - please  click here
 
Monthly all digital - please  click here
 
If you would like to find out more about a group subscription for your colleagues and teams, please contact Allan Cunningham  at  acunningham@africacapitaldigest.com.

We look forward to hearing from you.
This week's issue supported by...             
Mining Indaba 2018
Deals and Deal News...
Private Equity
Afriflora sale gives KKR a full exit
KKR's sale of its majority stake in Afriflora has given the global investment firm a full exit from the rose growing group.

KKR sells its majority stake in Ethiopian rose grower Afriflora to Sun Capital
Private Equity
LeapFrog sells BIMA stake as part of $96.6mln deal
LeapFrog Investments has sold a major stake in BIMA, the emerging markets mobile insurer as part of a $96.6 million deal.
Private Equity
Longreen Capital backs restaurant firm for debut deal
Longreen Capital Advisors has made its first investment, backing Cairo-based Egyptian International Restaurant Company.
Private Equity
Oasis Capital backs Ghanaian private girls school
Accra-Based Oasis Capital Ghana is backing Legacy Girls College, a private girls high school.
Private Equity
MDIF takes majority stake in South Africa's M&G
Media Development Investment Fund, a not-for-profit investment for independent media in emerging markets, has acquired a majority stake in South African media company Mail & Guardian.
Venture Capital
Clifftop boosts iono.fm's equity capital drawdown facility
Clifftop Ventures has increased its Equity Capital Drawdown Facility for online audio services company iono.fm.
Funds & Fundraising...
Private Equity
Equator exceeds 40% of goal with ShoreCap III first close
Chicago-based impact investment firm Equator Capital announced the first close for ShoreCap III last week, garnering more than 40% of its ultimate goal. 
Private Equity
AfricInvest holds first close for new evergreen fund
AfricInvest, one of the larger Africa-focused private equity investors, announced the first close for FIVE, its new financial services sector-focused evergreen investment vehicle. 
Private Equity
AfDB approves IE and Catalyst fund commitments
The African Development Bank's Board of Directors approved a total of $35 million in capital commitments to two Africa-focused private equity funds in the last two weeks of December. 
This week's issue supported by...             
Renewable Energy Cooperation
Sectors & Strategies...
Mining
AFC sees opportunity in mining infrastructure assets
The Africa Finance Corporation is testing the water with investments that separate infrastructure, such as power supplies, roads and railways from the mines themselves according to Reuters.
Power
Africa's electricity distributors need to evolve
A look at how Africa's electricity distribution companies might evolve their business models to become more profitable and compete more effectively.
Trends & Prespectives...
Private Equity
5 Trends that'll drive African private equity in 2018
Mthuli Ncube identifies the top 5 trends that'll drive African private equity this year in an article for How we made it in Africa.
Private Equity
Top 10 posts from Brookings Africa in Focus in 2017
The top 10 posts in 2017 which highlight a significant figure, chart, table, or graph that explores an important statistic or policy perspective to explain recent news and developments on the continent.
Private Equity
How private equity makes Africa Rising narrative a reality
Investor's Business Daily looks at how private equity, using appropriate models, has a critical role to play in Africa's march to prosperity.
Companies, People & Profiles...
People
15 people to watch in SA's tech eco-system
Ventureburn's list of 15 people to watch in 2018 to keep abreast of views and happenings in South Africa's technology startup ecosystem.
Current Job Postings...
This week's featured jobs...             
Director, Africa at Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation  // gatesfoundation.com
Based in Johannesburg, South Africa
Head, Debt & Equity, East Africa at Mobisol  // mobisol.de
Based in Nairobi, Kenya
Senior Risk Manager & VP, PE at Quantum Global  // quantumglobalgroup.com
Based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates or Ebene, Mauritius
Investment Director/Manager, Impact Fund, Intermediated Equity  // cdcgroup.com
Based in London, United Kingdom
General Counsel & COO, Credit Facility for Access to Medecines  // cdcgroup.com
Based in London, United Kingdom
Associate, Energy Access Advisory at CrossBoundary  // crossboundary.com
Based in Nairobi, Kenya
Associate, Energy Access Investments at CrossBoundary  // crossboundary.com
Based in Nairobi, Kenya
Associate Investment Officer at IFC  // ifc.org
Based in Lagos, Nigeria
Investment Analyst, SSA at Symbiotics Group  // symbioticsgroup.com
Based in Cape Town, South Africa
Senior Legal Counsel at One Acre Fund  // oneacrefund.org
Based in Nairobi, Kenya
Associate Fellow at I-DEV International  // idevinternational.com
Based in Nairobi, Kenya
Upcoming Conferences...
Highlighted Event...             
SAVCA 2018 Annual Conference 
Stellenbosch, February 21st to February 22nd, 2018 
Regional Energy Cooperation Summit 
Abidjan, January 24th to January 25th, 2018 
Investing in African Mining Indaba 
Cape Town, February 5th to February 8th, 2018 
Bonds, Loans & Sukuk Africa 
Cape Town, March 13th to March 14th, 2018
2nd Annual Pension Funds and Alternative Investments Africa 
Balaclava, Mauritius, March 15th to March 16th, 2018
New this week...
TMT Finance Africa 
Cape Town, March 15th, 2018
New this week...
4th Africa Mini Grids Summit 
Nairobi, March 21st to March 22nd, 2018
New this week...
15th Annual AVCA Conference 
Marrakech, April 22nd to April 26th, 2018
AFSIC 2018 
London, May 2nd to May 4th, 2018
And finally...
We hope you found the digest to be a useful summary of the major happenings in Africa's private capital markets last week.  We'd love it if you shared it with colleagues and business partners.  They can sign up for a free trial, for the moment,  here.  

Best wishes for a productive week - if you have any tips, suggestions, questions or comments, please get in touch.

All the best,
 
- Allan
 
Allan Cunningham
Editor & Publisher
AfCD | Africa Capital Digest

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