Old Mutual Set To Invest $101m In Africa

Old Mutual Investment Group SA (Omigsa) on Thursday said it is set to raise R10 billion ($101 million) to invest in private equity, infrastructure and agriculture funds throughout Africa. Diane Radley, the CEO at Omigsa, said domestic pension funds will be used as sources for the investment money that will generate long-term yields. Omigsa, the South Africa-based unit of Old Mutual, is Africa’s biggest insurance company listed on London and Johannesburg stock exchanges. According to Radley, by 2050 at least one in three youngsters in the globe will be living in the African continent. This, she said, will turn Africa into one of the greatest and thrilling consumer markets going forward. Cavan Osborne, the portfolio manager at Old Mutual African Equities, said Africa’s equities markets were not well connected to the global markets. This added to a positive investment case for the continent, despite political upheavals and crises that have visited some African countries . “Following the recent Westgate Shopping Mall terrorist attack in Kenya, the markets didn’t react at all,” Osborne said in a statement. “In Egypt the stock market is still strong, despite the violent protests, and after a brief period of uncertainty following its elections in July, Zimbabwe continues to be attractive to investors due to high quality management, similar infrastructure to South Africa and a lack of currencies risk,” Osborne continued in the same statement. Venture Africa