Africa-focused private equity firm Amethis Finance has closed its first private equity fund on $380 million, passing its original $350 million target, according to a statement.
The funds raised afford the pan-African firm up to $530 million of capital to invest on the continent, having secured a $150 million debt commitment to go alongside the vehicle from US government development finance institution OPIC.
Amethis made an interim close in April on $250 million, PEI revealed earlier, giving it a total $400 million to invest in the region, when including OPIC’s credit line.
The firm targets mid-sized companies in West, Central and East Africa, typically investing $10 million per transaction, and usually takes minority stakes between 15 and 30 percent. It targets businesses with an enterprise value between $40 million and $60 million.
The fund is one of the biggest-ever debut private equity vehicles raised for Africa and demonstrates the increasing interest of US and European investors in the region, according to the firm.
The fund is comprised of 55 LPs – only three of which are state-backed DFIs. The rest include African, European and US institutions, as well as European and US family offices and high net-worth individuals.
“The success of this fundraising, demonstrates the appetite of private European and US entrepreneurs and family offices to invest in Africa, the next world frontier for growth, and their conviction that our patient and responsible business model is well adapted to the needs of the continent,” Luc Rigouzzo, managing partner at Amethis, said in a statement.
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