Pan-African financial services group Zamara has secured an investment from Africa-focused private equity firm Amethis as it prepares to accelerate spending on technology, digital capabilities and expansion across the continent.
The companies announced the completion of the investment on September 9, marking a new phase for the Nairobi-based group, which has grown from an actuarial firm founded in Kenya in 1994 into a diversified financial and insurance services business.
The financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Zamara said the new partnership will support investment in technology and digital capabilities, the development of integrated client solutions, talent and leadership, and expansion of its operations in existing and new African markets.
The investment comes as financial services companies across Africa increasingly turn to digital platforms to improve customer access, automate operations and expand beyond traditional insurance and pension products.
Zamara provides pension consulting and administration, insurance and reinsurance brokerage and actuarial services to corporate, institutional and individual clients. The company currently operates in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Nigeria, Malawi, the Democratic Republic of Congo and the United Arab Emirates.
The group says it serves more than 3,700 insurance clients and more than 190 actuarial clients across its markets.
“This is about building on the foundations that have made Zamara trusted for more than three decades while giving us greater capacity to pursue the opportunities ahead,” Sundeep Raichura, Group CEO of Zamara, said in a statement.
“What defines Zamara does not change. What Zamara can achieve does.”
Amethis will take a seat on Zamara’s board, while Raichura and the existing management team will continue to run the business. Zamara’s management team will also remain materially invested in the company.
For Amethis, the investment adds a financial services platform with an established presence across several African markets to its portfolio.
The private equity firm, which is part of Edmond de Rothschild Private Equity, has raised more than €1.4 billion and completed more than 50 investments, according to its website. It has offices in Paris, Nairobi, Abidjan, Casablanca, Cairo, Cape Town and Luxembourg.
Frank-Astère Ndiyo Butoyi, a partner at Amethis, said the firm sees Zamara’s leadership, client relationships and market expertise as a foundation for further regional growth.
“Amethis looks forward to being a close partner in Zamara’s next phase — helping strengthen its capabilities, accelerate innovation and extend its reach,” Butoyi said.
Zamara’s technology push will be central to the next stage of the company’s growth. The group said it plans to enhance its digital capabilities while broadening the range of financial solutions it offers to clients.
The company is also seeking to deepen its capabilities in markets where it already operates rather than relying solely on geographic expansion.
Founded as a specialist actuarial business, Zamara has expanded over more than 30 years into pensions, insurance, reinsurance and actuarial services. Its latest investment gives the company additional financial and strategic backing as it seeks to build what Amethis describes as a leading regional financial services platform.
The transaction does not change existing client arrangements, with Zamara and its regulated businesses continuing to operate under their existing professional, contractual, fiduciary and regulatory obligations.
