This morning’s transactions show capital moving beyond access and into the operating systems behind growth. In Africa, development finance is backing the fund managers and lending channels that decide which companies receive capital. Globally, buyers are taking control of retail networks, industrial platforms, consumer brands and critical-mineral technology. The cheque changes ownership; the operating architecture decides whether scale follows.
Proparco commits US$15 million to Lightrock Africa Growth Fund II
Proparco announced a US$15 million investment in Lightrock Africa Growth Fund II, a growth-equity strategy for technology-enabled and impact-oriented businesses across Sub-Saharan Africa. The commitment is supported through the European Union’s EFSD+ guarantee under Proparco’s Choose Africa Venture Capital programme. The important question now is not the size of one commitment, but how the fund converts institutional capital into governed, measurable company growth.
Afreximbank and DBN sign a US$75 million SME finance facility
Afreximbank and the Development Bank of Nigeria announced a US$75 million facility for Nigerian SMEs, including creative-industry businesses. The funding is intended to flow through participating financial institutions for working capital, asset acquisition, export activity and supply-chain finance. The transaction matters because its impact will be determined by the distribution channel: lender selection, pipeline quality, pricing, monitoring and the speed with which eligible businesses can actually draw capital.
JD.com completes its public takeover of CECONOMY
JD.com completed its public takeover of CECONOMY, acquiring 59.8% of the European consumer-electronics retailer for €1.335 billion. Together with Convergenta’s 25.3% holding, the parties now control 85.2%. CECONOMY becomes a JD.com subsidiary while retaining its European platform. The ownership event is complete; the harder work is integrating technology, logistics and procurement without weakening the local brands and customer relationships that made the asset valuable.
AURELIUS signs a cross-border carve-out of Resonac’s graphite business
AURELIUS signed a definitive agreement to acquire Resonac’s graphite-electrode and electric-arc-furnace solutions business across the Americas, EMEA and Asia. The perimeter includes AMI Automation, about 900 employees and a business that generated roughly US$500 million of revenue in 2025. Completion is expected in the second quarter of 2027, subject to approvals. This is a separation programme before it becomes a standalone value-creation programme.
Bodhi Tree agrees a US$180 million majority investment in A2B
Bodhi Tree Systems agreed to invest US$180 million for a majority stake in Adyar Ananda Bhavan, the Indian vegetarian restaurant and packaged-food group. A2B operates about 160 outlets in India and more than 30 overseas, with roughly 15,000 employees. The next stage is about professionalising governance, manufacturing and digital operations while preserving the product and operating discipline that made the brand travel.
M2i signs to acquire Graphex’s US graphite-anode assets
M2i Global entered a definitive agreement to acquire Graphex’s United States graphite-anode assets, including an exclusive irrevocable licence to 30 patents and plant designs targeting 50,000 metric tonnes of annual production capacity. The public release did not disclose consideration or a closing timetable. The transaction transfers technology and project potential; commercial value will still depend on financing, execution, customer qualification and the move from licensed design to operating capacity.
What the structure tells us
Africa’s two transactions sit upstream of the company: one backs the fund manager and the other the lending channel. The global deals sit closer to control — of shelves, factories, brands, patents and production plans. The contrast is useful because capital reaches a business through different gates, and each gate creates a different execution risk.
That is why 0to1 follows the transaction rather than only the headline. The signature tells us who owns the next decision; the structure tells us whether value now depends on allocation, distribution, separation, integration, professionalisation or commercial execution.
Africa · growth equity · development finance · SME finance · retail · carve-outs · consumer brands · critical minerals