From Business Day

Standard Chartered said its private equity arm has taken a 13 percent stake in Botswana-listed supermarket chain Choppies Enterprises, the latest private-equity deal to target African consumers.

London-listed Standard Chartered did not disclose the acquisition price, but Choppies has a market value of $456 million, according to Thomson Reuters data, which would make the stake worth nearly $60 million.

Africa is increasingly seen as fertile ground for private-equity firms, given rapid economic growth and rising consumer spending.

With the exception of Johannesburg and Nairobi, sub-Saharan Africa’s capital markets are largely illiquid. This makes private equity one of the few vehicles for investing in African companies.