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Bank of America says South Africa is well positioned to attract foreign direct investment via merger & acquisition activity, with international investors holding a favourable view of the country’s companies.Anthony Knox, the multinational’s country executive for South Africa, said the country continues to stand out because it combines deep capital markets with high-quality companies that have consistently demonstrated their ability to perform through different market cycles.“Investors remain selective, but they continue to deploy capital where they see strong long-term fundamentals, growth and execution certainty,” Knox said.“Global investors continue to see attractive opportunities across South Africa. The focus continues to be on quality companies, run by quality management teams, which can benefit from the improving macro environment and withstand the short-term volatility.“Market volatility may influence timing, but it rarely changes long-term strategic priorities. Quality companies continue to raise capital, invest and pursue growth where the fundamentals remain compelling.”According to LSEG Deals Intelligence, the value of announced M&A transactions across Sub-Saharan Africa reached $50bn during the first half of 2026, more than four times the level recorded a year earlier.Bank of America has since 2015 executed more than $20bn worth of transactions for Sub-Saharan Africa clients.Some of the big recent deals the lender has been party to include Diageo’s sale of 65% of East African Breweries and 54% of Uganda Breweries to Tolaram/Asahi, implying an enterprise value of about $4.8bn.Read: Why Coronation doubts Absa’s retail turnaround despite new hiresThe company also acted as a joint financial adviser to Africa Data Centres’ strategic partnership with Stanlib and acted as a joint financial adviser as well as transaction sponsor to Valterra Platinum’s partial demerger and London Stock Exchange secondary listing, valued at about $4.8bn.Simbah Mutasa, head of investment banking for South Africa at the multinational lender, said the next generation of African growth companies will be technology-enabled, but innovation alone will not deliver scale.“The conversation has moved beyond simply raising capital. The focus is now on securing capital with the right tenor, flexibility and risk profile. Companies that align their financing strategy with their long-term ambitions will be better placed to move decisively when opportunities arise,” Mutasa said.“Africa’s opportunity lies in building businesses with genuine regional scale. We are seeing greater value placed on companies that can replicate their model across markets while retaining strong local execution. Innovation opens the opportunity, but disciplined expansion and appropriately structured capital will determine who captures it.”South Africa’s investment banking is a highly competitive and profitable segment of corporate and investment banking.The likes of Standard Bank, Absa, Investec and Rothschild and Co are players in the industry. Absa in the main has been beefing up its investment banking capabilities, roping in the services of Saloshni Pillay and Giles Douglas, who have crossed the floor from Deutsche Bank and Rothschild and Co, respectively.Business Day
