Delphos International and YW Capital Agree Strategic Partnership

WASHINGTON D.C., USA AND JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA – Media OutReach – 12 April 2021 – Delphos International (Delphos) today agreed a strategic partnership
with YW Capital. Delphos, a DC-based financial consultancy focused on emerging
markets, agreed the deal with YW Capital, a South African financial advisory
firm. The agreement is premised on a compelling proposition for investors,
entrepreneurs and institutions transacting across the African continent.

Delphos Co-Chair, Bart Turtelboom

Mesh Pillay, Chief Executive of YW Capital

The partnership combines the two firms’
specialisms. Delphos is industry-leading in structuring emerging market
transactions and relationships with international Development Financial
Institutions (DFIs). YW Capital’s international footprint focuses on
long-standing relationships with companies, state-owned entities and
governments operating in Africa. The collaboration combines a track record
spanning c. US $37bn in capital raised and transaction experience across 86
countries.

 

Delphos Co-Chair, Bart Turtelboom: “I am thrilled to begin this new
relationship between Delphos and YW Capital. YW’s relationships
throughout Africa are a great compliment to Delphos’ uniquely strong understanding of
DFIs as we work together to unlock capital for projects across the African
continent.”

 

The COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on the global
economy has fuelled a potential redress of business fundamentals, specifically
transforming the manner in which investors perceive the relative risk profiles
for opportunities in developed and emerging economies. Since the beginning of
2021, expansionary developed market monetary policy, rising commodity prices, and
effective COVID-19 vaccines, have been converging to drive global capital flows
to emerging markets. This is likely to overshadow the challenging domestic
fundamentals among African markets and reboot growth in most economies,
supporting local currency assets. Consequently, YW Capital and Delphos have
recognised the need for an assimilation of focused business interests,
leveraging each other’s independent platforms and perspectives, to foster new
commercial opportunities with combined global reach.

 

Mesh Pillay, Chief Executive of YW Capital comments: “Our partnership
with Delphos seeks to develop a premier platform for facilitating international
capital raising transactions between corporates and investors seeking quality
opportunities within the emerging-and-frontier-markets in Africa.”

 

Capital flows to emerging markets typically
accelerate following global recessions. Entrepreneurs and companies in the
mid-to-large cap range based in Africa and seeking a path to new growth funding
can benefit from an integrated advisory partner with global reach and direct
relationships with like-minded investors.

Similarly, the value proposition for
international investors seeking bespoke equity placement and debt capital
raising in Africa, is resolute. The combined client universe now benefits from
access to international and local DFIs, sovereign funds, pension funds, asset
management funds, as well as international family offices and high-net-worth
investors. YW Capital and Delphos together present a compelling offer to
participants conducting business on the continent. Within this context, the
firms believe that the second half of 2021, while not without risk, has the
potential to be record-setting for their partnership and for Africa.

 

While each firm has formidable transaction
experience on the continent, there are synergies to be extracted from the
partnership which result in enhanced outcomes for their clients.

 

Despite the continued challenges from the
pandemic, USA equity markets have continued a strong level of activity. In
particular, both the size and number of IPOs rose sharply in 2020, with
disclosed values reaching their highest levels since the global recession more
than a decade ago. In addition, a significant proportion of the IPO growth
stemmed from the spike in SPAC activity, an increasingly important alternative
for African entrepreneurs seeking first time capital allocations. Over the
past year, YW Capital has been developing a platform in the USA, offering
African companies the potential to directly attract new investor interest,
through both the private and public markets. This is complemented by YW
Capital’s partnership with Delphos, who, with their USA presence in Washington DC, New York and Miami, contributes a
network of offices and relationships in Hong Kong, Canada, the United Kingdom
and Switzerland.

 

“Our combined track record and experience creates a comprehensive and
compelling offering for our clients – we look forward to further developing the
African equity story with the Delphos team,” Pillay concludes.

 

This exciting collaboration can help companies
and entrepreneurs conducting business on the African continent, including inter alia organisations:

• Seeking
  access to capital, whether through private placement or via public offering;
• Requiring
  an introduction to strategic stakeholders, including those with financial
  capital and / or those with non-financial value unlocking potential;
• Exploring
  growth opportunities, through accretive and acquisitive action;
• Navigating
  complex equity markets, domestically or internationally, as it relates to any
  stage of the business cycle.

Institutions and strategic investors can also
benefit, especially with the following objectives in mind:

• Seeking
  deployment of capital on a mandated or bespoke basis;
• Seeking
  introductions to qualifying opportunities in emerging and frontier markets;
• Assisting
  in navigating African capital markets to place financial capital within the
  domestic legal and regulatory environment.