Investec Asset Management targets Africa?s rise
Johannesburg - Investec Asset Management expects to grow its assets under management across Africa by at least 28 % to US$45 billion in the next five years, its chief executive said on Tuesday, helped partly by growing demand for the continent?s debt.
The money manager, a unit of Anglo- South African bank Investec Group, also sees assets under management on the continent, excluding South Africa, doubling to US$6 billion over the same period.
?If you are in the business game, Africa is extremely exciting because it is starting to be open for business. The opportunities are so enormous,? chief executive Hendrik du Toit said.
The Cape Town-based firm manages a total of around US$100 billion in assets, of which US$35 billion is on the continent.
Global investors have their sights trained on Africa as the continent?s increasingly wealthy population, and a trend towards political and macroeconomic stability, create compelling opportunities.
Investec told Reuters in 2010 it was aiming to manage US$10 billion in Africa outside of South Africa by 2015. However, du Toit said that target was thrown off track by political uprisings in North Africa from the end of 2010.
?What we see now is a return of interest by institutional investors into Africa; however, they have a challenge right now. Assets are very cheap in many of their home markets,? du Toit said in an interview from his London offices.
?If you?re sitting in Europe and you have cash, you can buy local credit, you can buy distressed assets, and you can even buy mainstream investments at vastly cheaper relative to emerging markets than before.?
The company has deployed more than US$3 billion north of South Africa?s borders on behalf of institutional investors from around the globe in all asset classes including private equity and public debt.
Du Toit said that there were more private equity funds competing for assets on the continent at the moment, making hot targets of the few opportunities big enough to attract global demand.
The withdrawal of international banks from emerging markets had also created an opportunity for investors interested in debt, he said.
Africa has largely been shunned in the past as an investment destination but the tide is turning in its favour and investors considering other sectors other than the traditional resource mining industry.
?It took most of the ?90s to convince ourselves this was a great opportunity, but we couldn?t convince investors,? du Toit said.
?Only in the last decade have we been able to start getting serious investors.?
- Nampa/Reuters
The money manager, a unit of Anglo- South African bank Investec Group, also sees assets under management on the continent, excluding South Africa, doubling to US$6 billion over the same period.
?If you are in the business game, Africa is extremely exciting because it is starting to be open for business. The opportunities are so enormous,? chief executive Hendrik du Toit said.
The Cape Town-based firm manages a total of around US$100 billion in assets, of which US$35 billion is on the continent.
Global investors have their sights trained on Africa as the continent?s increasingly wealthy population, and a trend towards political and macroeconomic stability, create compelling opportunities.
Investec told Reuters in 2010 it was aiming to manage US$10 billion in Africa outside of South Africa by 2015. However, du Toit said that target was thrown off track by political uprisings in North Africa from the end of 2010.
?What we see now is a return of interest by institutional investors into Africa; however, they have a challenge right now. Assets are very cheap in many of their home markets,? du Toit said in an interview from his London offices.
?If you?re sitting in Europe and you have cash, you can buy local credit, you can buy distressed assets, and you can even buy mainstream investments at vastly cheaper relative to emerging markets than before.?
The company has deployed more than US$3 billion north of South Africa?s borders on behalf of institutional investors from around the globe in all asset classes including private equity and public debt.
Du Toit said that there were more private equity funds competing for assets on the continent at the moment, making hot targets of the few opportunities big enough to attract global demand.
The withdrawal of international banks from emerging markets had also created an opportunity for investors interested in debt, he said.
Africa has largely been shunned in the past as an investment destination but the tide is turning in its favour and investors considering other sectors other than the traditional resource mining industry.
?It took most of the ?90s to convince ourselves this was a great opportunity, but we couldn?t convince investors,? du Toit said.
?Only in the last decade have we been able to start getting serious investors.?
- Nampa/Reuters
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