Facilitating investment in Africa

Standard Bank International is positioned in seven key financial centres outside Africa: Beijing, Dubai, Isle of Man, Jersey, London, Sao Paulo and New York, making us the only African bank with a global presence. We work with our global multinational clients to develop their Africa strategies and, in collaboration with our colleagues across Africa, identify and unlock opportunities for investment, and simplify their ability to do business in Africa, thereby driving Africa’s growth.

In 2020, for example, we facilitated the following investments

We supported the African Export-Import Bank (Afrexim), a key player in intra-Africa trade, to gain access to international markets through our Middle East franchise. Standard Bank Group was the sole lender on the transaction, providing Afrexim with a 12-month R2 billion amortising term facility, which will provide funding to corporates in Africa, helping to stimulate the expansion and development of African trade, supporting a range of businesses that are direct operators in the trade ecosystem.

We helped Africa Oil acquire a 50% equity stake in Nigeria-focused Petrobras Oil and Gas B.V. (POGBV) in a deal worth $1.5 billion, with a total cash consideration of approximately $520 million. Standard Bank was the sole advisor to Africa Oil, a Canadian group with exploration assets in East Africa and now also production assets in Nigeria.

In collaboration with JP Morgan, we were the joint lead managers for the Republic of Ghana’s USD3 billion Eurobond placement. The bond, the longest bond ever issued by sub-Saharan issuer, at the time of the issuance, has tenors of six, 14 and 40 years. It will be used by the government to carry out energy infrastructure projects and to manage the budget deficit for 2020. The transaction attracted a diverse investor base, largely from the UK (25%), Europe (20%) and the US (48%), despite ongoing global uncertainty over the coronavirus and its potentially adverse impact on market conditions across the emerging markets.