Afrinvest mulls int’l expansion to grow asset under management

Afrinvest, a financial advisory firm, says it is planning to expand to other international markets to grow its assets under management (AUM).

Ike Chioke, managing director, Afrinvest West Africa Limited, disclosed this at a recent media parley where he spoke about the company’s current subsidiaries and future aspirations.

Chioke said Afrinvest is in conversation with partners in Ghana, Kenya, and Mauritius — although conclusions have not been reached yet.

He listed Afrinvest Capital Limited, Afrinvest Asset Management Limited, Andromeda Technology Solution, and Afrinvest Securities Trading as some of the subsidiaries of the investment company.

“And there’ll be more to come. As we speak, we are looking at overseas expansion. We’re talking to some of our partner firms across West Africa, we may do something that allows us to have a position in a global market that allows us to do bigger transactions because we were always in the flow of information of transaction opportunities that we’ll have to think of where is the best jurisdiction to split the business,” Chioke said.

“At the 30th anniversary, I’ve charged my people, their task is that Afrinvest should be a Pan African investment bank, as a Pan African digital investment bank, in three years, I will expect that we have operations physically in Kenya, in Ghana, certainly Mauritius actively and possibly in South Africa.

“Currently, our AUM is around N200 billion. And I would like to see our AUM to be at least two and a half times that number.

“So, we’re currently actually in discussions with multiple parties in different countries. But a discussion is not an announcement so I cannot talk specifically. But if you say where would I be in three years, I can say three years. I should hope my discussions in Ghana would have panned out, that in Kenya should have been completed. Same with Mauritius discussions.

“Remember, any discussion needs to go for regulatory approval at a point it becomes important enough and serious. Secondly, you have to go to my regulator, and then they will give their ‘no objection’ for you to continue.”