Author: Mike

Ep. 2: Private Equity & Development

by Mike

When I decided to launch the podcast, I wanted today’s interviewee — Roger Leeds — to be one of the first guests. And I wanted to explore the theme of private equity and its role in private sector development in emerging and frontier markets.

A bit of background may be helpful.

15 years ago or so I was working for the Department of Defense on strategies to address a variety of intractable issues.

For one such issue, I was the youngest member of an interagency team working with senior civilian and military commanders in Baghdad and Kabul on interior ministry and police reform.  U.S. policymakers had dubbed 2006 the “Year of the Police,” but as the year passed by, the results trickled in; and I grew increasingly skeptical about the ability of the United States to effect positive and enduring change in Iraq. 

Moreover, when viewed in a broader perspective of state-building, counterterrorism and U.S. national security objectives, I became convinced that the only viable long-term solution was to drive investment into the region, create jobs and, over time, generate licit opportunities for people to feed their families.

So, it was off to grad school to study economics and finance, where I serendipitously learned about something called private equity and how it could drive private sector development in emerging markets.

Roger Leeds taught that course. He had a profound influence on me when I was a student at the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS), and his positive influence endures to this day.

Roger worked as an international financier for 25 years before joining the faculty at SAIS. After working as an investment banker at Salomon Brothers, Roger was at the forefront of the development of the emerging market private equity industry, not only as a senior staff member at the International Finance Corporation, but also as a private equity investor, and as the co-founder of the Emerging Markets Private Equity Association (EMPEA).

Roger is the author of Private Equity Investing in Emerging Markets: Opportunities for Value Creation — the seminal book on the topic, which I encourage every listener to pick up and read.

In our discussion today, we talk about the structural drivers that make private equity a useful investment strategy in emerging markets, and how it is qualitatively different than the leveraged buyout model that is prevalent in the United States and Western Europe.

We also talk about the hollowing out of mid-market PE funds in emerging markets and why it’s a problem, the story of local currency PE funds in China, and his work with Francis Fukuyama on the Leadership Academy for Development, among other things.

I hope you enjoy our conversation.

This podcast was recorded in July 2020.

Buy Roger’s book directly from the publisher, or via Amazon, Barnes & Noble, IndieBound, JD.com, or wherever fine books are sold.

Ep. 1: Early-stage VC in Africa

by Mike

I’m delighted to kick off the podcast with Aniko Szigetvari and Ik Kanu.

Aniko and Ik are the founding partners of Atlantica Ventures, an early-stage venture capital firm focused on six of the largest markets in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Aniko has over 20 years of experience investing in emerging markets, of which over 17 have been focused on the technology, media and telecom vertical.

Aniko has been investing in Africa for the past 15 years and she has built up a wide range of contacts across the continent and other emerging markets. Prior to starting Atlantica Ventures (‘AV’) Aniko was the Global Head of the TMT group at the International Finance Corporation, where she managed a team of ~50 professionals who sat in eight regional hubs from Colombia to Singapore.

Ik has over 10 years of African private equity experience, with an additional nine years working in technology and consulting in the United States.

Prior to starting AV, Ik was a principal at Convergence Partners — an Africa-focused TMT fund — and before that he spent five years with Helios Investment Partners. At both PE funds, Ik was seconded to portfolio companies into temporary operational management positions where he troubleshot issues across different stages — from growth to turnaround. Ik is a Class 23 Kauffman Fellow, one of the world’s premier innovation, leadership, and venture capital-focused programs.

In our discussion, we talk about why Aniko and Ik decided to team up to found a venture capital firm, whether the continent is ready for institutional VC investments, how Africa compares to other emerging markets, and how Covid-19 is impacting the startup landscape in their target markets.

I hope you enjoy our conversation.

This podcast was recorded in April 2020.