The global private equity (PE) market has shown remarkable resilience, delivering strong returns through crises like the 2008 financial crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2024, the asset class returned 7.3%, improving on 2023 but trailing public equity markets, where the S&P 500 surged 25% and the Russell 2500 gained 12%.
African private equity, in contrast, has delivered more modest returns. Over the past decade, net IRRs have hovered around 9%–10%, on par with Latin America but below Europe (14%–16%), Asia (11%–12%), and North America, as structural constraints ranging from currency volatility to high financing costs have weighed on investment returns.
Plus, almost half of Africa-focused PE funds fall within the 10% USD net IRR range, with only a small fraction (~5%) generating returns above 30%.Despite the growth of alternative investments, scrutiny persists over how performance is measured, particularly the reliance on Internal Rate of Return (IRR). IRR tends to
