Africa
Case Study One
MI was called upon by the senior partner of a US law firm with offices in Europe, to assist on a transaction the law firm was involved with in Africa. The transaction related to a debt refinancing for which the US law firm was mandated to provide legal advisory services to their local African client. MI was called upon to support the law firm by providing further business/commercial advisory services and to identifying and introduce specific relevant strategic partners that would assist the law firm to complete the transaction. MI role also included coordinating the relationship between the selected strategic partners that MI identified and brought to the transaction, and the US law firm. As a direct result of MI's involvement and services on this transaction,the US law firm was able to complete the mandate assignment within a four week period,rather than the usual six to nine month time frame that is standard for such transactions. Until MI became involved in the transaction,the US law firm had not been able to find a way to complete the transaction.
Case Study Two
MI was mandated by a London based Private Equity firm to act as consultant to advise the firm on a telecoms and information technology transaction that the Private Equity firm was seeking to acquire in Africa. Services included legal advisory, business strategy, local country knowledge intelligence and advice. MI’s role included project managing and coordinating the external legal advisers and the team at the Private Equity firm, to ensure that due diligence was conducted in the most efficient manner; providing research information on the target investee company and providing intelligence on the countries where the investee company had business activities in.
Case Study Three
MI was mandated by two Nigerian banks to assist with brand promotion, corporate marketing, and profile raising within the international community, as a result of demand by the Central Bank of Nigeria that all Nigerian banks raise their equity share capital to Naira 25 billion ( approximately $185 million USD at the then prevailing exchange rates). One of the Nigerian banks that mandated MI was the leading Investment Bank in Nigeria.
Case Study Four
MI, in his personal capacity, was mandated by one of the top 4 brewery companies in the world to assist them with their initial on the ground review of potential acquisition and investment targets of breweries in Nigeria. The assignment required MI to travel with the company across Nigeria, meeting various local Nigerian brewing companies and their owners; to advise on cultural norms and procedures; advise on business strategy regarding each Nigerian brewery group and the management philosophy of the local breweries and interface with the local management of each of the brewery companies.
Case Study Five
Working with our associates in South Africa, MI introduced the opportunity to acquire over 650 sq. km of diamond exploration concession in Angola to Namibian Minerals Corporation (NAMCO). MI and its South African associates, assisted Namco with lengthy negotiations on the ground with the various Angola authorities, provided detailed expertise on the asset and the acquisition value, and ultimately assisted Namco to secure the concession. Namco made an official announcement on the Toronto Stock Exchange of the acquisition of the concession.
Case Study Six
Working with Sir Banja Tejan-Sie GCMG, former Governor General and Speaker of the House of Sierra Leone (Deceased), assisted Tan Range Exploration, at the time part of JCI of Johannesburg, to secure over 500 sq. km of gold and diamond producing concessions in Sierra Leone. A formal announcement was made by various London Mining Research analysts of the acquisition by Tan Range of the Sierra Leone assets.
Case Study Seven
Formally approached and requested by friends and associates of the previous owners of one of the leading hotels in Cape Town, to find a willing buyer for the said hotel. At a meeting in England with the actual owners of the hotel and their lawyers, the request was confirmed with MI. MI then introduced one of his clients, a leading UK property investor to the owners of the hotel and principal to principal discussions took place. Following the meeting and further detailed negotiations between the owners of the hotel and MI's client, including a trip by MI's client to view the hotel in Cape Town, MI's client made a formal written offer for the hotel.
Case Study Eight
MI was formally approached and mandated by one of the leading commodity trading companies in the world, based in the USA, to assist the commodity trading company with their attempts to secure a crude oil lifting contract from Nigeria. The commodity group had been trying for a decade to secure a Nigerian crude oil lifting contract and despite meeting over 40 Nigerian oil brokers per annum who stated that they could assist the company to secure the said Nigerian crude oil contract, the commodity company decided to mandate MI on the basis that MI had the relevant Nigerian expertise to efficiently advise the commodity trading company how to navigate their commercial ambitions through very tough and complex Nigerian terrain.
Case Study Nine
MI was mandated by one of the leading Nigerian Stock Exchange quoted Insurance company to assist with the creation, development, marketing and packaging of the insurance company's move into building residential houses for middle class Nigerians to purchase. With the lack of middle class housing in Nigeria, the small number of mortgage opportunities on offer from the financial sector, the insurance company saw a gap in the market to provide a holistic service to middle class Nigerians seeking access to housing and financial products to support their needs. MI worked on the project, providing both business and technical advise as well as introductions to international strategic partners that were keen to provide funding and real estate know how to the venture.
Current mandates include
MI has most recently been mandated by one of the leading West African family conglomerate companies to help build and develop their brand profile, secure JV partners and help with the strategic development of the group both in West Africa and Europe. This client have extensive commercial holdings in oil, banking, hotel, real estate and other commercial sectors. In addition MI has also been mandated by one of the leading hotel advisory company with an unrivalled knowledge of the hotel sector in Africa, to help secure hotel advisory work and assist with hotel projects that the company is appointed to work on.