New Delhi, Feb. 13 -- One Africa Capital, a Johannesburg, South Africa-based investment firm that invests in small-and-medium enterprises in the country , and RMB Corvest, a private equity company that is part of financial services group FirstRand Bank Ltd, have together acquired a majority stake in a local packaging firm.
RMB Corvest is investing in KwaZulu-Natal-based Packaging World through its Alito Fund 2 that is also backed by another South African firm FyreFem Fund Managers. Packaging World's management including its chief executive officer Jill Celliers is also involved in the company's ownership structure.
Packaging World offers high quality printed flexible packaging solutions such as for the food, beverage, confectionery, industrial and general merchandise markets. The company, founded in 1995 by Dean Gianni, was privately-owned until now.
The company is also a major supplier to a contract food manufacturer Kelpack Manufacturing that is also backed by One Africa Capital and FyreFem.
"As a major supplier to Kelpack, the Packaging World acquisition represents a strategic upstream, backward integration play that enhances our portfolio diversification across the agro-processing value chain," One Africa said in a LinkedIn post.
One Africa Capital, founded in 2018, is a Black woman-owned private equity investment firm. It mostly provides growth capital to small and medium enterprises in the region.
"It marks an important milestone in our long term buy-and-build strategy, focused on driving operational efficiencies, unlocking synergies, and strengthening our contribution to food security across Africa," it added.
Meanwhile, RMB Corvest is an on-balance sheet private equity vehicle operated by Rand Merchant Bank, a division of FirstRand Bank Ltd. Its portfolio includes education loan provider Fundi, telecommunications provider Switch Telecom among numerous others.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from VC Circle.