The Stears Report offers a quarterly analysis of private market transactions across Africa. It explores key trends in private investments, delivering essential insights for fund managers and corporate leaders on the countries, industries, and companies drawing private capital.
According to the report, 73 private market deals were recorded in Q3’2024, including 39 deals with a combined disclosed value of $2.27 billion.
Regional Performance
Further analysis of the report showed that Southern Africa led with 45% of deals, followed closely by East Africa (41%) and West Africa (33%). Central Africa lagged significantly, contributing just 8% of transactions during the period.
East and West African countries were dominant in financial services (46% of all sector deals), while West Africa excelled in energy transactions (46%).
West Africa demonstrated a more balanced distribution of deals. Nigeria led the region, accounting for 71% of transactions, while Ghana (38%), Côte d’Ivoire (33%), and Senegal (29%) also secured notable shares, reflecting a broader investment spread.
In contrast, North Africa displayed a high level of concentration, with Egypt dominating 93% of the region’s transactions, making it the most prominent country by regional share during the period. Morocco trailed significantly, contributing only 21% of North African deals.
Country Focused Investment
The report highlighted the rising prominence of single-country investments, which accounted for approximately 64% of private market deals recorded in Q3 2024. This trend underscores investors’ focus on localized opportunities within Africa’s dynamic markets.
Single-country investments involve targeting companies operating exclusively in one market. South Africa, Egypt, and Kenya led in this category, collectively representing over 60% of all single-country transactions during the quarter.
The report noted that South Africa led single-country transactions, contributing nearly one-third of all single-country deals, followed by Egypt and Kenya, parting with 17% each.
The table below ranks 10 African countries based on their performance as investment destinations, showing the percentage of deals recorded during the review period.
| S/N | Country | % Deal Volume |
|---|---|---|
|
1 |
Kenya |
33% |
|
2 |
South Africa |
33% |
|
3 |
Nigeria |
23% |
|
4 |
Egypt |
18% |
|
5 |
Rwanda |
15% |
|
6 |
Ghana |
12% |
|
7 |
Cote D’Ivoire |
11% |
|
8 |
Senegal |
10% |
|
9 |
Tanzania |
10% |
|
10 |
Cameroon |
5% |
South Africa and Kenya showed an impressive performance each contributing 33% of all deals, dominating activity in their respective regions.
South Africa dominated Southern Africa’s activity, featuring in 73% of the region’s deals, while Kenya was key to East Africa, contributing to 80% of the region’s transactions. Rwanda, with 15% of all African deals (37% of East Africa’s), was the second-most active East African country.
Nigeria dominated the activities in West Africa accounting for 71% of all deals but lagged behind in regional leadership when compared to South Africa (73%), Kenya (80%) and Egypt (93%).
