As the private equity industry continues to grow, new entrants are emerging, offering limited partners (LPs) new options for tapping into Africa’s burgeoning economies. Trident Trust’s managing director, Shamima Mallam-Hassam, and head of business development discuss building up these first-time fund managers. Trident Trust has year after year won the Fund Administrator of the Year accolade at the Private Equity Africa Awards.
For over 40 years, Trident Trust has been an unwavering presence in the world of financial services. It is a founder-owned privately owned and independent provider of fund administration and private client solutions. Known for our focus on client service and our ability to make long-term commitments to new regions and services, Trident Trust made its foray into the African Private Equity scene in 2006.
We first stepped into Africa at a time when most service providers were focused on more mature markets. At the time, we recognised the abundant opportunities that Africa could offer, and our Mauritius office was busy with onboarding its first African private equity fund client.
It must be noted that this growth was made possible through the support of pioneering LP development financiers such as Nederlandse Financierings-Maatschappij voor Ontwikkelingslanden (FMO) and British International Investment (BII), formerly CDC. The foundational LP community also includes the International Finance Corporation (IFC), Promotion and Participation Company for Economic Cooperation (Proparco), and the African Development Bank (AfDB).
Driven by a commitment to building the ecosystem, we supported the African Private Equity and Venture Capital Association (AVCA) for several years by providing company secretarial and other administrative services. This is when the association was building up its presence in and support for the market. Over the years, our client base has expanded to cover 45 African countries and a wide variety of asset classes.
In addition to our office in Mauritius, our offices in the US, Cayman Islands, Dubai, Luxembourg, and Malta are now also serving African private equity funds.
Valuing first-time GPs
The African private equity scene began with first-time fund managers, who still make up a significant portion of the general partners (GP) community. Their lean and nimble setup is well-suited for the Africa private equity market as it enables them to identify and add value to small to medium-sized businesses. However, their lean model also implies that they typically lack the dedicated resources and technology required to efficiently manage the administration of their funds. This is where an experienced fund administrator can make a real difference, both before launch and after.
As Aaron Sammut, Trident’s head of fund services in Malta, aptly stated, a first-time GP, the administrator should be the ‘companion’ before a fund’s launch. This is because the fund administrator needs to be present to assist with pre-launch project management, liaising with legal counsel, the regulator, and the LPs. Administrators also acts extensions of the manager’s team – both before and after launch.
Our adaptation to market changes
As the market has grown and GPs have become more institutional, we have adapted and implemented a cutting-edge specialist private equity fund administration platform, Allvue, to enhance operational efficiency and improve the investor experience. In parallel, we expanded our services to meet the demand for a one-stop service.
As explained by Sarwan Ramphul, the head of private equity in our Mauritius office, the best fund administrators handle all aspects, allowing the manager to concentrate on its core business. In the realm of private equity, this typically encompasses all fund accounting, compliance, directors, investor services, and middle-to-back-office services.
Building a brighter future
We are witnessing further evolution and innovation in the African private equity market. This is seen in the development of new investment vehicles alongside traditional blind pool funds. This includes permanent, co-investment, or listed vehicles, as well as tokenised funds.
There is also continued interest from LPs globally in energy transition, credit, and impact funds. Finally, we expect regional champion GPs to emerge through business consolidations between East and West Africa.
