Aureos Capital, a private equity group for emerging markets, is slated to kick off its USD400 million African fund on Monday, giving further proof of renewed investor interest in the continent despite the turmoil in some African states. The fund will make the company one of Africa’s biggest private equity investors. Aureos Advisers chief executive Sev Vettivetpillai said that crises such as that in Kenya are not enough to drive away investors from the region. “Our strategy is always to expect this kind of problem – which is why we no longer do country funds, only regional funds, and we try to build regional companies,” Vettivetpillai stated. The fund, when launched, is expected to invest at least USD2 million to USD10 million for every private enterprise in Africa. Aureos hopes to receive contribution from the China-Africa Development Fund, a USD5 billion initiative created by Beijing to extend economic aid to the continent. The company itself is a product of a partnership between the governments of Britain and Norway, particularly the development capital group CDC and the Norwegian Investment Fund for Developing Countries.
Source: Aureos set to launch USD400m African fund (Financial Times)
