Casablanca (Morocco), April 3, 2025 – the Public Investment Corporation (PIC) of South Africa has invested $40 million in Africa50 Group, the pan-African infrastructure investor and asset manager to become its 36th shareholder.
The PIC is South Africa’s state-owned asset management company with US$141.5 billion of assets under management (AuM).
A statement issued by Africa50 group on Thursday, said the PIC’s joining the group as a shareholder was an important milestone which would provide a significant boost to Africa50’s mission of mobilizing African institutional investors to drive infrastructure development across the continent.
It described the PIC’s investment as a testament to the group’s ability to unlock new and deep pools of capital for transformative infrastructure across the region.
“As Africa50’s 36th shareholder, the PIC joins 32 African states, the African Development Bank (AfDB), the Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO), and the Bank Al-Maghrib.
“The development reinforces Africa50’s position as a pioneering infrastructure investor, asset manager and mobilizer of institutional capital.”
Alain Ebobissé, the CEO of Africa50, said: “As Africa’s largest asset manager, the Public Investment Corporation of South Africa’s position as a shareholder sends a strong signal to the market about Africa50’s ability to deliver value for investors and economies.
“We see this development as a strategic partnership, where the PIC will benefit from Africa50’s project development expertise and geographic footprint, as we seek to accelerate infrastructure delivery across Africa, fostering sustainable development and economic growth”.
Kabelo Rikhotso, the PIC’s Chief Investment Officer, also said: “We are excited about the investment in Africa50, as it aligns with our rest of Africa Investment strategy.
“Africa50’s extensive presence and expertise across the continent provides PIC with a valuable opportunity to achieve both financial and developmental objectives in line with our client mandates.
“This partnership will help address the slow pace of infrastructure development and address the significant infrastructure deficit in Africa.
“PIC remains committed to the African continent’s growth and looks forward to a strong strategic collaboration with Africa50 and our other partners to drive sustainable infrastructure investment”.
The Investment from the PIC is catalytic to Africa50’s mission of developing first-of-their-kind vehicles in the African market including:
The Africa50 Infrastructure Acceleration Fund (IAF), which at first close mobilized US$222.5 million from primarily African institutions – an African first.
The US$500 million DRE Nigeria Fund launched in partnership with the International Solar Alliance (ISA), the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Agency (NSIA) and Sustainable Energy for ALL (SEforALL) to develop and finance a pipeline of distributed renewable energy (DRE) projects in Nigeria.
The Alliance for Green Infrastructure for Africa (AGIA), an initiative sponsored by African Union, African Development Bank (AfDB) and Africa50, to raise US$500 million of blended finance capital for project preparation and project development, leveraging Africa50’s track-record and capabilities and the convening power of the African Union and AfDB to prepare, develop and finance a transformative pipeline of green infrastructure projects in Africa.
