AfrAsia Corporate Finance sells additional stake to AfrAsia

Increased corporate finance capacity needed as Chinese and Indian companies look for African investment opportunities

Cape Town-based AfrAsia Corporate Finance has announced the sale of an additional 7.5 percent interest to AfrAsia Bank, the Mauritian bank that specialises in corporate, private and international banking. The additional shares were acquired from existing shareholders, taking the AfrAsia Bank’s total stake to 37.5 percent. The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals.

AfrAsia Bank CEO, James Benoit, said the additional investment was motivated by AfrAsia Corporate Finance’s business model. “We increased our stake with a view to raising AfrAsia Bank’s capacity in the corporate finance market across South Africa. In the wake of approaches from Chinese and Indian companies for investment opportunities, we will need the additional capacity.”

“Benefits arising from the transaction from an AfrAsia Corporate Finance perspective are a further strengthening of our shareholder base and a closer relationship with AfrAsia Bank,” said Charles Pettit, Managing Director of AfrAsia Corporate Finance. “The Bank is an extremely supportive shareholder from both a balance sheet and new business referral perspective.”

Strategically, AfrAsia Bank views South Africa as an attractive market for cross border deal flow with Mauritius and believes that the additional investment in AfrAsia Corporate Finance will assist in capitalising on this opportunity.

“AfrAsia Corporate Finance comes with great technical expertise and a solid client base,” said Benoit. “Because there are so many South African businesses setting up operations in Mauritius, as well as Asian corporations using Mauritius as a base from which to invest in South Africa, we are bullish about our role in South Africa. It’s a big country where there are still great opportunities for niche players and we see it as a very attractive market for us.”

Charles Pettit said, “As AfrAsia Corporate Finance we are excited about the increased investment by AfrAsia and see it as an opportunity to extend our networks and to reach into Asia. In partnership with AfrAsia Bank, we will be in prime position to provide advice on cross-border transactions between South Africa and Mauritius”.