East Africa is quickly becoming the financial hub of the continent powered by multi-billion-dollar corporate deals.
In the first six months of 2019, the value of disclosed corporate deals in East Africa stood at Sh113.6 billion ($1.1 billion) driven mainly by activity in the financial, energy and manufacturing sectors.
According to Analysis by I&M Burbidge Capital Ltd, this was a rise of 82% with the number of deals increasing by 15 to 49, mainly in the Private Equity (PE), and Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) space.
“Year-to-date, the total deal value and volume rose to about $1.1 billion (Sh113.6 billion) in 49 deals compared to $603 million (Sh62.3 billion) in 34 deals during the first half of 2018,” said I&M Burbidge in its June financial review.
Private equity deals made up the bulk of activity during the period under review with 33, followed by M & A at 15.
In terms of disclosed value, mergers and acquisitions lead the market at $552.6 million (Sh57 billion), partly due to regulatory approvals that allow information about the ticket size to be made public.
The PE deals, on the other hand, are often closed without the value of the deal being disclosed. In the first half of 2019, the value that was disclosed stood at $484 million (Sh50 billion), this being for both entries and exits.
“Year-to-date, the highest volume of deals has been recorded in the financial services sector — 11 out of the 49 disclosed deals.
“Other sectors that have seen significant deal activity are Energy, Oil & Gas, ICT, Healthcare, and FMCG (Fast-moving consumer goods).”
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