Helios Investment Partners

Helios Investment Partners, established in 2004, is a London-based private equity firm focused on Africa. It invests in a broad range of sectors, including telecommunications, media, financial services, power, and consumer goods, among others. The firm engages in various investment types such as buyouts, growth equity, and structured investments in listed entities. Helios typically invests between $15 million to $200 million per transaction, with a preference for board seats in its portfolio companies. It primarily targets Nigeria, South Africa, and Kenya.

Zineb Abbad El Andaloussi

Partner

Fope Adelowo

Principal, Investment Team

Lazarus Angbazo Ph.D

Partner and Head of Portfolio Operations - West Africa

Souleymane Ba

Partner, Investments

Tavraj Banga

Partner and Co-Head of Climate Investments

Sola Carrena

Managing Director, Investment Team

Paul Cunningham

Partner and CFO

Christina Drews

Partner, COO and Member of Executive Committee

Steve Etienne

Managing Director

Luciana Germinario

COO, Member of Executive Committee and Partner

Jamie Hollins

Principal, Investments

Temitope Lawani

Managing Partner, Member of Executive and Investment Committees

Tope Lawani

Managing Partner

Cecilie Nielsen

Managing Director, Human Capital, Portfolio Operations Group

Ogbemi Ofuya

Partner, Investments

Simon Poole

Partner, Portfolio Operations Group

Max Von Trotha

Managing Director - Integration, Portfolio Operations Group

Elias Yazbeck

Managing Director

Past deals in COMESA

Paymob

Series B in 2024
Paymob is a regional digital payments enabler that provides payments infrastructure technologies to expand access to financial services in the MEA region. Founded in 2015 and headquartered in Cairo, Egypt, the company focuses on bridging the financial inclusion gap by enabling businesses of all sizes to accept and process electronic payments and money transfers. Its online payments software converts cash into electronic value through integrated services while reducing fraud, loss, theft, and costs associated with cash handling and printing. By offering adaptable payment solutions, Paymob aims to empower customers with diverse electronic payment options and faster money circulation across communities and markets.

Paymob

Series B in 2022
Paymob is a regional digital payments enabler that provides payments infrastructure technologies to expand access to financial services in the MEA region. Founded in 2015 and headquartered in Cairo, Egypt, the company focuses on bridging the financial inclusion gap by enabling businesses of all sizes to accept and process electronic payments and money transfers. Its online payments software converts cash into electronic value through integrated services while reducing fraud, loss, theft, and costs associated with cash handling and printing. By offering adaptable payment solutions, Paymob aims to empower customers with diverse electronic payment options and faster money circulation across communities and markets.

ZOLA Electric

Venture Round in 2021
ZOLA Electric specializes in providing off-grid solar solutions, primarily serving African markets. It offers solar home kits through leasing or sales, targeting individual households and businesses in rural communities across Tanzania, Rwanda, Ghana, and the Ivory Coast. Founded in 2012, ZOLA Electric operates from Arusha, Tanzania with an additional office in San Francisco, California.

Africell

Debt Financing in 2021
Founded in Africa in 2001, Africell is a rapidly growing mobile telecommunications operator committed to empowering local communities through connectivity. It is the leading provider in Gambia and Sierra Leone, with expanding operations in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Uganda. As of 2016, it served over 11 million active subscribers across these four countries, offering voice and 3G data services.

Taptap Send

Venture Round in 2020
Taptap Send is a mobile application that facilitates instant money transfers for immigrants sending funds back to Africa at low costs. Launched in the summer of 2018, the platform has successfully processed hundreds of millions of dollars and serves hundreds of thousands of customers. It operates in seven European countries and enables payments to various countries, including Ivory Coast, Senegal, Mali, Ghana, Guinea, Cameroon, Bangladesh, Kenya, Madagascar, Zambia, Vietnam, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, with plans for further expansion. Taptap Send simplifies the remittance process by allowing users to transfer money directly to mobile money wallets using just a debit card, eliminating the need for physical deposits and saving time for its clients.

Misr Hytech Seed

Acquisition in 2019
Misr Hytech Seed is a prominent producer of proprietary agricultural seeds located in Cairo, Egypt. The company specializes in the development, production, and marketing of hybrid seeds, including white corn, yellow corn, grain and fodder sorghum, sweet corn, and various vegetables. By utilizing advanced breeding, production, and conditioning technologies, Misr Hytech Seed ensures high-quality seeds tailored to the specific needs of the Egyptian market. The company plays a vital role in addressing the country's increasing food demand and enhancing food security by improving domestic farming productivity. In addition to seed production, Misr Hytech Seed is dedicated to supporting farmers by offering technical services aimed at optimizing crop production.

TPAY Mobile

Acquisition in 2018
TPAY Mobile is an open mobile payment platform established in 2014 and headquartered in Cairo, Egypt. The company specializes in connecting consumers, businesses, and mobile operators through operator billing, enabling users to purchase online products and services using their mobile phone numbers. This innovative approach allows the costs of purchases to be added directly to users' cell phone bills or deducted from their prepaid balances. By leveraging the billing relationships and collection networks of mobile network operators, TPAY Mobile creates a seamless direct carrier billing ecosystem that facilitates access to local and global digital service providers, enhancing the overall payment experience for users and merchants alike.

Africell

Debt Financing in 2018
Founded in Africa in 2001, Africell is a rapidly growing mobile telecommunications operator committed to empowering local communities through connectivity. It is the leading provider in Gambia and Sierra Leone, with expanding operations in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Uganda. As of 2016, it served over 11 million active subscribers across these four countries, offering voice and 3G data services.

ZOLA Electric

Series D in 2018
ZOLA Electric specializes in providing off-grid solar solutions, primarily serving African markets. It offers solar home kits through leasing or sales, targeting individual households and businesses in rural communities across Tanzania, Rwanda, Ghana, and the Ivory Coast. Founded in 2012, ZOLA Electric operates from Arusha, Tanzania with an additional office in San Francisco, California.

ZOLA Electric

Series D in 2016
ZOLA Electric specializes in providing off-grid solar solutions, primarily serving African markets. It offers solar home kits through leasing or sales, targeting individual households and businesses in rural communities across Tanzania, Rwanda, Ghana, and the Ivory Coast. Founded in 2012, ZOLA Electric operates from Arusha, Tanzania with an additional office in San Francisco, California.

Telkom Kenya

Acquisition in 2016
Telkom Kenya, established in April 1999, is a prominent telecommunications operator in Kenya, providing a comprehensive range of integrated communication solutions. The company serves individuals, small and medium-sized enterprises, government entities, and large corporations with various services, including voice calling, messaging, and broadband data. With a commitment to delivering uninterrupted network connectivity, Telkom Kenya plays a significant role in the country's information and communications technology sector, catering to millions of customers across its GSM, fixed, and CDMA wireless platforms. As of June 2011, the company had approximately 2.8 million customers, reflecting its extensive reach and influence in the telecommunications market.

Africa Oil Corp

Post in 2015
Africa Oil is a Canadian oil and gas company with assets in Kenya and Ethiopia as well as Puntland (Somalia) through its 41% equity interest in Africa Energy Corp. Africa Oil's East African holdings are within a world-class exploration play fairway with a total gross land package in this prolific region in excess of 200,000 square kilometers. The East African Rift Basin system is one of the last of the great rift basins to be explored. Several new significant oil discoveries have been announced in the Lokichar basin of Kenya in which the Company holds a 50% interest along with operator Tullow Oil plc. The Company is listed on the TSX and on Nasdaq Stockholm under the symbol "AOI".

Helios Towers Africa

Private Equity Round in 2014
Helios Towers Africa has operations in Ghana, Tanzania, the Democratic Republic of Congo and a sister company in Nigeria. The number of mobile subscribers in Africa has increased from just 16 million people in 2000 to over 500 million today. Based on these growth levels and without an increase in the sharing of telecoms tower facilities, the number of towers in Africa will need to double from the current number of 75,000, a significant environmental impact.

Bayport Management

Private Equity Round in 2013
Bayport Management offers retail financial services across Africa, Latin America, and Mauritius. It provides personal loan products, savings accounts, mobile banking, insurance plans, and other related services.

Equity Group Holdings

Private Equity Round in 2007
Equity Group Holdings is a financial services provider based in Nairobi, Kenya. It operates primarily through Equity Bank Kenya, which is a licensed commercial bank regulated by the Central Bank of Kenya. Equity Bank Kenya was established in 2014 following a corporate restructure of Equity Group Holdings Limited. The organization offers a range of banking and financial services aimed at various customer segments, contributing to the financial inclusion and economic empowerment of individuals and businesses in the region.
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