SOUTH AFRICA – Phatisa, through its Food Fund 2, together with Sabvest, Masimong Chemicals and Rolfes management, have acquired the entire issued share capital of Rolfes Group, in public-to-private transaction to unlock new growth opportunities.
Following the acquisition, Rolfes has been delisted from the Johannesburg Stock Exchange.
Established in 1938, Rolfes is a supplier of agricultural, food, industrial and water chemical management solutions and services for both the South African and international markets.
The company’s divisions include: Agricultural, food ingredients, industrial chemicals and water.
With a projected global population increase to 10 billion people by 2050, Rolfes caters for the ever-increasing food security, water treatment and manufacturing demand.
“We see tremendous growth potential in Rolfes and this take-private transaction unlocks latent value within the group, allowing management to focus on private equity aligned growth targets,” Rinolan Moodley, Partner at Phatisa, commented.
“We look forward to partnering with our co-investors and a highly capable management team.”
“We have chosen to partner with Phatisa, as they are likeminded investors who have a proven track record of investing and growing businesses across Africa,” said Richard Buttle, Rolfes CEO.
“The Rolfes management team has demonstrated incredible grit over the past few years and we are looking forward to embarking on our next chapter as we continue building a market leading business.”
“As a specialist investor within the African food value chain, Phatisa is well placed to further propel Rolfes’s growth across the continent,” Eugene Stals, Chief Investment Officer at Phatisa, added.
“The transaction is aligned with our investment model of backing passionate management teams and leveraging our deep sector expertise to add value and implement focused impact initiatives.”
Phatisa Food Fund 2, a successor fund to its first food fund (African Agriculture Fund), considers investments throughout the food value chain, including mechanisation, agricultural inputs, poultry and meat production, food processing, fast-moving consumer goods, logistics, aggregation, distribution, wholesale and retail.
The fund provides a balanced blend of private equity and development finance, striving to build sustainable assets and communities, while ensuring the best possible returns for investors.
Phatisa is a sector-specific African private equity fund manager located in and operating across sub-Saharan Africa.
The firm currently has three funds under management, totalling more than US$ 400 million, focused on food and affordable housing.
