Johannesburg - Inkunzi Investments, a brokerage set up three years ago by former Citigroup trader Owen Nkomo, sold a 10 percent stake as it targets acquisitions and South Africa’s growing black middle class.
Inkunzi plans to raise $3 million and will consider purchasing medium-sized asset managers over the next two years, Nkomo, 36, said in an interview yesterday in Johannesburg.
He declined to name the new investor in the company, which has a team of 18 helping to manage 100 million rand for private clients.
“We want to manage at least 100 billion rand from 2020 and be the African investment house of choice,” Nkomo said.
“We are targeting the middle class, medium-sized corporates, institutions and any previously un-invested individuals. We also have a department that caters strictly to the needs of the high- net worth market.”
That will pit Inkunzi against local wealth managers from Investec to Citadel Holdings as the world’s biggest private banks, including UBS and Credit Suisse, also target South African entrepreneurs and millionaires.
The black investor-owned company wants to have as many as 100 staff within three to five years as it expands into the Eastern Cape, Limpopo and North West provinces and the rest of the continent, Nkomo said.
Inkunzi also plans an initial public offering in five to six years.
“We have managed to raise a decent-sized book of private and corporate client investments,” Nkomo said.
“Our brand has grown faster than we had anticipated.” - Bloomberg News