Africa

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Banking on Africa: Standard Chartered’s social and economic impact

Standard Chartered Bank has been operating in Africa for more than 150 years and is present in 15 African countries and active in 36 countries across the continent. Currently it serves more than one million retail customers, approximately 100,000 small and medium-sized enterprises, and has well over 6,000 corporate client relationships in Sub-Saharan Africa, providing them with a comprehensive range of wholesale and consumer banking services.

SMEs can fill African gap

According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), economic growth in Sub-Saharan Africa in 2014 is expected to be slightly higher than of that in 2013, at around 6%. This growth, coupled with the more than one billion consumers on the continent who spend $600-billion annually, as well as having the fastest growing middle class in the world, and the significant opportunity that connecting with the world represents, provides African small and medium enterprises (SMEs) with boundless opportunities in 2014.

Private equity investments eye African SMEs

The outlook for private equity (PE) in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) in 2014 is promising. The potential for continued improvement in the political and regulatory backdrops of many countries, and strong investment demand, are powering economic and business expansion across the continent. Many investors now realise that one of the best means of capturing and supporting this growth is by providing much-needed equity capital -- especially to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) -- coupled with hands-on guidance and management.

African Private Equity & Venture Capital Association - AVCA

At the African Private Equity & Venture Capital Association our mission is to promote, develop and stimulate private equity and venture capital in Africa. Our member organisations span private equity and venture capital fund managers, institutional investors, foundations and endowments, international development institutions, professional service firms and academia. This diverse membership is united by a common purpose: to be part of the African private equity and venture capital growth story.

Lessons to Grow By: Private Equity in Sub-Saharan Africa

Private equity has been a recent and powerful catalyst for economic growth on the African continent, and it shows every sign of continuing to do so. The key to the effectiveness of the private equity model is that, by addressing the funding needs of African companies, it gives its investments a multiplier effect: Private equity not only creates profits for investors (e.g., limited partners, general partners and portfolio companies) but also engenders economic and social benefits for consumers, and has indirect effects on the stability and vibrancy of local and regional economies. At the same time, private equity channels significant flows of international capital into Africa. In other words, whether it is in building sustainable housing or health services options, private equity ultimately offers Africa more than just capital. Furthermore, each private equity success story represents one more step for Africa in its quest to permanently establish itself as a preferred destination for global capital flows. 

Diamond Bank Empowers Women Entrepreneurs with ICT Training

In a bid to support women entrepreneurs to run thriving businesses, Diamond Bank, a player in the retail banking space, has provided ICT training for women functioning within the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise (MSME) sector.

At the two day programme, which held at the Enterprise Development Centre of the Pan Atlantic University last week, the entrepreneurs were taken through different topics including: Why do businesses need IT? Creating a Facebook Business page, Social Media for business, among others.

Winners of Africa Impact Economy Innovations Fund announced

The Rockefeller Foundation and the Tony Elumelu Foundation have announced the winners of the Africa Impact Economy Innovations Fund (IEIF).
Making the list of winning applications were Investisseurs & Partenaires (Senegal), Renew LLC (Ethiopia), M.Lab Africa (Kenya), Policy and Economic Research Council (Tanzania), Doreo Partners (Nigeria), GIMPA Centre for Impact Investing (Ghana) and SliceBiz (Ghana).

CfC Stanbic unveils M-Pesa payments for businesses

Kenyan banks are reported to be scrambling to leverage Safaricom’s mobile banking platform, M-PESA, to attract more customers.
Kenya’s CfC Stanbic Bank has now launched an electronic payments service that will provide its Business Banking and SME clients with the ability to accept M-PESA payments.
The payments are then settled into their bank accounts immediately or on demand without the need to physically go into a branch to deposit cash or fill any forms.

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