| Now in its 10th year, the PEA awards are the ultimate accolade of success in the African Private Equity industry |
| JOHANNESBURG, South Africa, Verdant Capital (Verdant-Cap.com) has been named by Private Equity Africa as the best Local Financial Adviser for 2021. Private Equity Africa, or PEA is an authoritative journal for private equity investors in Africa and into Africa. Now in its 10th year, the PEA awards are the ultimate accolade of success in the African Private Equity industry. The final winners were selected by an independent panel of 20 judges which included representation from CDC, DEG, EBRD, IFC, Mbuyu Capital Partners, Wimmer Family Office, 27four Investment Managers and Family Office Data Alliance. The award is a reflection of the strength of Verdant Capital’s private equity, private credit and fintech franchises and the transactions which it concluded over the period. Landmark private equity-related transactions completed by Verdant Capital in 2021 include the USD 80 million equity capital raise for pan-African telecoms business, WIOCC raised from African Capital Alliance, the sale of Nigerian fintech, Baxi to MFS Africa, a portfolio company of AfricInvest and Lun Partners, the sale of General Cargo for Kibo Partners, the USD 10 million capital raise for Retail Capital, portfolio company of APIS, Crossfin and FutureGrowth and the USD 8 million capital raise for Ghanaian fintech Zeepay, invested by I&P. Verdant Capital’s private equity franchise has enjoyed success across East, West and Southern Africa. The award follows a similar award by Africa Global Funds, which awarded Verdant Capital the accolade, Best Independent Investment Bank – Pan-Africa – 2021, the second year running. Verdant Capital is currently seeing strong growth in private equity mergers & acquisitions or M&A activity within its own pipeline as well as in the market overall. This is in part driven by exits from fund vintages from the earlier part of the last decade as well as by consolidation by and between private equity-backed companies. Verdant Capital expects 2022 to be a stronger year still for its private equity M&A business. The final weeks of 2021 has proven a strong period for Verdant Capital with the firm announcing a further three fintech transactions. In the insurtech sector Verdant Capital advised each of, South African-headquartered emerging markets insurtech Briisk, and Botswanan-headquartered pan-African risk-carrying insurtech, on their respective capital raises. In East Africa Verdant Capital advised technology-enabled MSME-asset financing business, Tugende on a USD 16 million capital raise. Tugende is a portfolio company of Partech and M54. These three successful transactions take Verdant Capital to a total of eight successful transactions in the fintech sector in Africa in 2021. |