AfricInvest buys into BUE: Pan-African private equity firm AfricInvest is investing USD 40 mn (EGP 1.2 bn) in British University in Egypt (BUE) to boost the university’s growth plans, BUE (pdf) and the cabinet said in separate statements yesterday. The investment will be made through a capital increase; the founding Khamis family will remain the majority shareholder of the university, the statement reads, without disclosing the size of the stake AfricaInvest is purchasing.

Is AfricInvest getting a 25% stake? A local media report back in April said the PE firm was eyeing a 25% stake in BUE in return for an investment of more than EGP 1 bn.

Big ticket: The investment “would be one of Egypt's largest foreign direct investments in education to date,” the statement reads. It also marks AfricInvest’s first investment in Egypt’s education sector, and third in the country after Masria Digital Payments and Carbon Holdings, according to its website.

Where the money’s going: The capital injection will help the university expand its existing faculties, establish new ones, diversify its curriculum, and implement “enhanced governance tools,” per the statement. AfricaInvest will also help BUE expand beyond the local market through partnerships “in Africa and the region.”

What’s next: The transaction still needs sign-off from regulators, the statement reads.

What they said: "This injection of capital, with ongoing support from the Egyptian government, will allow us to further the legacy of our founder — my late father, Mr. Mohamed Farid Khamis — by broadening the capabilities and academic reach of the university to ensure our leading role amongst educational institutions, not just in Egypt, but in the Middle East and Africa,” said Farida Khamis, chair of BUE’s board of trustees.

Advisors: Zilla Capital acted as the sole financial advisor to BUE on the transaction.

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