In Africa, A Strong IPO Market

A post from Baker & McKenzie says that Africa’s capital markets are expecting a strong 2016, despite low commodity prices and capital flight from some of the largest economies. There are 15 IPOs currently in the pipeline and more pending, with the most active exchanges in Egypt, Nigeria and South Africa. If the anticipated offerings go forward, it’s expected they will raise almost twice as much as the total raised last year, and more than the total raised from 2011 through 2013. “There’s enormous pent up demand among issuers to conduct capital raisings,” says the head of the firm’s EMEA Capital Markets Practice, “particularly in Egypt, which is showing strong growth and the emergence of a larger middle class.”