DealMakers AFRICA

Nigerian commercial entity Fidelity Bank has entered into a binding agreement to acquire Union Bank United Kingdom, representing Fidelity Bank’s first foray into international markets. The deal, of which no financial details were disclosed, remains subject to the approval of the UK’s Prudential Regulatory Authority.

Cairo-based private equity firm Ezdehar Management is to acquire a 60% stake in Egyptian grocery retail chain Zahran Market. The stake is to be acquired through its Mid-Cap Fund II for an undisclosed sum. Through the partnership, Zahran Market aims to solidify its position locally and to expand its footprint to the underserved regions of the country.

EFG Hermes’ lifestyle-enabling fintech arm, valU, has acquired Paynas, the Egyptian HR and payroll platform. The transaction furthers valU’s strategy to grow the business and enhance its tech power, increasing its footprint to reach Paynas’ large and growing base of SMMEs.

Africa-focused investment company Tana Africa Capital, together with Sango Capital, a South African investment management firm, has made a minority investment in Sundry Markets, a Nigerian grocery retailer operating through the ‘market square’ brand.

Pezesha, a Kenyan pan-African fintech offering B2B digital lending infrastructure with a focus on providing affordable working capital to financially excluded SMEs, has raised US$11 million in a pre-series A round. The investment, a mix of equity and debt, will be used to scale operations in core markets within the East African region and expand into West Africa. The funding round was led by Women’s World Banking Partners II.

Anchor, the Nigerian banking-as-a-service startup providing the interface, dashboards and tools to help developers embed and build banking products, has raised c.US$1 million in a pre-seed round. Investors included Byld Ventures, Y Combinator, Luno Expeditions, Niche Capital among others. The funding will be used to scale the business.

Egyptian cloud-based subscription management platform SubsBase has closed a seed round of US$2,4 million. The round was led by Global Ventures with participation from HALA Ventures, P1 Ventures, Plus Venture Capital, Plug and Play, Ingressive Capital and Camel Ventures together with several existing investors. Funds will be used to develop SubsBase’s global and regional integration capabilities and build its educational content and business development support for recurring revenue-based businesses.

Edtech startup OBM, Egypt’s education startup, has raised a six-digit figure from EdVentures in a second round of investment. Funds will be used for expansion and the launch of its new application ‘Taleb’.

Grey, a Nigerian-based fintech startup enabling cross-border payments, has raised US$2 million in seed funding in a round supported by Y Combinator, Soma Capital and Heirloom Fund among others.

Omnibiz, a Nigerian retail-tech startup, has raised US$15 million (in debt and equity) in a pre-series A round led by Timon Capital with participation from Ventures Platform, LoftyInc Capital Management, Chapel Hill Denham and others. The funding will be used to accelerate retailer growth and retention.

WamiAgro, a Ghanaian agritech startup, has received c.US$227,000 from impact investment fund Wangara Green Ventures. The investment will be used to offer training, provide input loans and provide access to markets by small-hold farmers across the grains value chains.

DealMakers AFRICA is the Continent’s M&A publication
www.dealmakersafrica.com