Amethis, an investment fund manager focused on Africa, is preparing to launch its third pan-African fund, Amethis Fund III. The fund has a target size of $490 million and will be the largest of the three funds launched by Amethis so far. The previous two funds were Amethis Fund II in 2018 and Amethis Fund I in 2012, both of which were focused on investments in Africa.
According to a project note released by the International Finance Corporation (IFC), Amethis Fund III will be a generalist fund that aims to raise €450 million (approximately $492 million) and invest in 10 to 12 medium-sized African companies. The fund’s investment strategy will target high-potential sectors such as health, financial services, business services, manufacturing, and distribution, across several regions of Africa including Kenya, Côte d’Ivoire, Egypt, Morocco, and West Africa.
The project note also revealed that Amethis Fund III has already attracted the interest of the IFC, which is a long-time investment partner of Amethis. The IFC has proposed to make an equity investment of €40 million (approximately $44 million), not exceeding 20% of the total committed capital, and a co-investment envelope of €30 million (approximately $33 million). However, the IFC’s investment proposal has not yet been validated.
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Amethis Fund III is expected to succeed Amethis Fund II, which had total commitments of €375 million, and Amethis Fund I, which had total commitments of €275 million. The new fund will have a focus on geographic and sector diversification.
While fundraising may be challenging due to the current international crises, Amethis Fund II had already attracted more than 70 investors in Europe and Africa by the time it closed in June 2019. It remains to be seen how successful Amethis Fund III will be, but the interest from the IFC is a positive sign for the fund manager’s latest venture in Africa.
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Mid-market companies are typically defined as firms with annual revenues between $10 million and $1 billion and employ between 100 and 999 employees. These companies are larger than small businesses but smaller than large corporations, and they often represent an important segment of the economy. Mid-market companies may have more complex operations and may require a greater level of investment than small businesses, but they may also offer greater growth potential than larger, more established corporations.
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Charles Rapulu Udoh
Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer, who has several years of experience working in Africa’s burgeoning tech startup industry. He has closed multi-million dollar deals bordering on venture capital, private equity, intellectual property (trademark, patent or design, etc.), mergers and acquisitions, in countries such as in the Delaware, New York, UK, Singapore, British Virgin Islands, South Africa, Nigeria etc. He’s also a corporate governance and cross-border data privacy and tax expert.
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