Fundraising over time

African private equity fundraising over the 2016-2025 period has been clearly cyclical. Following the 2019 high of USD 4.23bn, fundraising contracted in 2020 before rebounding sharply in 2021 and continuing into 2022. The total value of fundraising in 2022 reached USD 7.2bn, marking a post-pandemic high and the strongest year of fundraising over the period.  

Following the 2022 high, fundraising activity declined through 2023 and 2024, marking year-on-year declines of 66% and 25%, respectively, aligning with global fundraising activity and reflecting constrained institutional allocations across geographies. This contraction coincided with global monetary tightening, interest rate hikes, elevated inflation, regional currency volatility and geopolitical events impacting commodity prices, increasing hurdle rates for illiquid investments and dampening allocations to emerging markets. 

For example, in 2022 the largest final close was Actis Energy 5 at USD 2.0bn, with ECP Fund IV and DPI APD III each closing at USD 1.15bn. In 2023-2024, the largest close was an undisclosed fund at USD 470.0m, while the largest disclosed generalist PE close was Capitalworks III at USD 301.7m. This contrast highlights the variability in the region’s fundraising trajectory. The subdued exit environment has likely constrained capital available for reinvestment into private equity funds, leading limited partners to prioritise higher-return geographies such as North America and Europe. Strong public market performance may also have diverted capital away from private markets, adding to fundraising challenges. 

South African vs Rest of Africa Private Equity Fundraising (2016-2024)

Fundraising trends from 2016 to 2024 show that South Africa accounted for an average of 20% of African fundraising, according to the Southern African Venture Capital and Private Equity Association (SAVCA). This average is distorted by a 72% outlier in 2020, driven by a collapse in pan-African fundraising that year. Excluding 2020, South Africa’s average share was approximately 13.5%. 

South Africa has followed a different trajectory from the broader African private equity fundraising environment, with lower volatility due to its more mature ecosystem and deeper domestic capital base. 

The sharp growth in broader African fundraising over 2021-2022 was more muted in South Africa. Although South Africa’s share declined in peak fundraising years, this reflected the outsized impact of episodic fundraising across the continent rather than deterioration in domestic fundraising. 

South Africa continues to play a central role in African private equity. Its relative stability and deeper domestic capital base have resulted in lower exposure to the cyclical swings observed in broader African fundraising. 

Fundraising from 2016 to 2025: Sector Focus 

The fundraising sector breakdown shows a concentration of dominant investment themes, with generalist, infrastructure and energy funds accounting for most capital raised over time. Infrastructure and energy themes declined during the 2020 fundraising contraction and recovered in 2021. Of the 28 fundraising closes in 2022, generalist mandates accounted for half of all closes and approximately 65% of capital raised, alongside renewed emphasis on infrastructure and energy. 

The data shows that the market has consistently favoured generalist funds with broad sector and regional mandates, accounting for a meaningful share of fundraising across the period. Their share of total fundraising tends to increase during periods of lower overall fundraising activity, reflecting the structural fragmentation of African markets, the prevalence of informal commercial activity and the limited scale of single-sector opportunities across regions.  

Following 2022, the sectoral breakdown shows a gradual diversification of sector exposure, with increasing allocations to technology and financial services in selected years. The uptick in financial services and technology-related fundraising activity reflects investor appetite for asset-light, growth-oriented sectors and may suggest a structural shift from traditional themes toward innovation-driven strategies. 

Fundraising therefore provides only the first indication of capital availability. While annual totals remain cyclical and can be distorted by a small number of large fund closes, the more relevant question is how much committed capital remains available for investment and how quickly it can be deployed. The next section considers this through the level and composition of dry powder across the market.