DealRoom extension confirms value of digital engagement in African deal-making

Asoko Insight has announced the extension of its UK-DIT digital DealRoom through March 2021, furthering the opportunities to connect UK-based investors with high-growth African corporate fund seekers.

Launched in January 2020 with the Department for International Trade (DIT), as part of the UK government’s agenda to increase its investment in Africa, the digital DealRoom has become an increasingly important connection for UK-based Africa-focused investors given the restrictions on movement for the greater part of this year.

But the DealRoom does more than bridge geographic divides, it saves investors crucial time and resources by presenting a curated selection of the continent’s most promising firms, matching pre-qualified, high-growth companies to UK investment firms based on their pre-submitted criteria.

Over the last 10 months, the DealRoom has received hundreds of submissions and published 80 qualified deals across 15 sectors and 19 countries. Just over half of these deals have been matched to at least one investor, with due diligence discussions now underway for 12 matches, for a combined deal value of $720 million.

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“We’ve been thrilled to put the power of our Digital Engagement platform behind the UK government’s ambition to be one of Africa’s leading trade partners,” said Rob Withagen, Co-founder and CEO of Asoko Insight.

“Having worked for seven years to map the private sector landscape across Africa’s most dynamic growth markets, we’re well aware of the challenges investors face in sourcing reliable data to drive their deal-making. Equally, we have seen first-hand the quality of opportunities presented by Africa’s high-growth corporates, and this deep market knowledge makes us well placed to support efficient engagement to help deals get done,” Withagen said.

Discussing the extension, Her Majesty’s Trade Commissioner for Africa at the UK Department for International Trade, Emma Wade-Smith, said, “We have been partnering with Asoko Insight on this initiative since the UK-Africa Investment Summit in January 2020.

My decision to further extend our collaboration through the digital DealRoom highlights the ability of this platform to make it easier to connect the wide range of African opportunities with the UK investment community. The DealRoom forms a key element of our efforts to increase UK investment flows into Africa, to support the continent’s continued economic growth and job creation; and partner with Africa’s innovators and business leaders to help them scale their commercial endeavours.”