Chart of the week: Domestic GPs dominate in MENA

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At Q1 2015 $3.65 billion was targeted by fund managers for investments into the Middle East and North Africa across all sectors. Of this capital $1.99 billion was targeted by 18 MENA domiciled funds. GPs based in the United Kingdom had four MENA vehicles on the road targeting 27 percent of overall capital, at $1 billion. Funds in market with managers based in the United States, Spain, and Japan were targeting just $657.6 million collectively for investments into the region.

Apax Israel III was the largest MENA focused fund in market in Q1 2015, targeting $500 million for investments into Israel. The buyout fund is managed by Apax Partners, based in the United Kingdom. Fortissimo Capital IV was the largest fund in market being raised by a domestic GP – Fortissimo Capital based in Israel. The buyout vehicle had a target size of $400 million with a focus on investments into Israel. The fund has since closed above target, collecting $470 million of investor capital.

In 2014, $1.21 billion was raised by Middle East and North Africa focused funds. Capital gathered from these funds was raised by managers who were all based in the region. Q1 2015 points towards a growing trend for international investment, with 45 percent of all capital targeted by MENA vehicles on the road coming from foreign managers.