In a time of uncertainty and rapid change, South African family businesses are showing exceptional resilience and growth. While family businesses generate around two-thirds of global GDP and 60% of jobs, according to the United Nations, many face increasing challenges. However, South African family business leaders reported double-digit sales growth in 2025, highlighting the country’s enduring strength.
The Soros Economic Development Fund (SEDF), the impact investment arm of the Open Society Foundations, has committed $7m to Persistent’s Africa Climate Venture Builder Fund (ACV Fund), a $70m blended finance vehicle aimed at scaling early-stage climate innovation across Africa. The investment forms part of SEDF’s broader push into locally led climate and development strategies on the continent.
The Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) has reached financial close and disbursed €43m under the Poro Power Green Bond, the first project finance green bond issued in Côte d’Ivoire and within the West African Economic and Monetary Union.
Axis Pension Trust and Norfund have joined Growth Investment Partners (GIP) as new investors, committing a combined $20m to the Ghana-focused platform in a move that signals growing confidence in locally driven investment solutions for the private sector.
The African Development Bank Group has approved a series of equity investments totaling over $37m to support high-growth and early-stage enterprises across Africa.
Novastar Ventures, one of Africa’s pioneering and largest venture capital firms, has announced the final close of its third fund, Novastar Ventures Africa People and Planet Fund III (NVIII), at $147 million.
Amethis, a pan-African private equity firm, has acquired a majority stake in ADEMAT, a power security solutions provider in Côte d’Ivoire, from SPE Capital, marking a pivotal moment in the company’s development.
FirstRand Bank (FRB) has become the first commercial bank globally to issue an outcomes-based bond that directly links investor returns to verified ecological and environmental restoration outcomes, marking a significant evolution in sustainable finance.
GIF Growth, a growth-stage investment vehicle of the Global Innovation Fund, has committed $2 million to East African fintech firm 4G Capital to support its expansion and lending activities among micro and small enterprises (MSEs).
Vista Group Holding, a pan-African financial services group has obtained all required regulatory approvals, including authorization from the relevant authorities, for the acquisition of a 90% stake in Banque Agricole et Commerciale (BAC) in Chad.
