Africa enters the FT Africa Summit this year facing a familiar question in unfamiliar circumstances. How does the continent finance growth when development funding is tightening, trade relationships are shifting and global capital is being reallocated? Michael Denenga will attend the summit in London on 21 and 22 October 2026, where the theme “Mobilising Growth in a New Global Order” will bring this question into focus.
As technology changes how markets are served and engagement from the Gulf, China and India grows alongside established ties with Europe, the United Kingdom and the United States, African governments and businesses are placing greater weight on regional trade, resilient supply chains and partnerships that offer more than capital alone.
One of Africa’s most underutilised sources of long-term finance may be closer to home than many assume. The Africa Finance Corporation estimates that the continent holds more than USD 4 trillion in domestic savings, including over USD 1.1 trillion in long-term capital across pension and insurance funds, sovereign wealth funds and public development banks. Yet much of this money remains in short-term, lower-risk instruments. The central challenge is therefore not simply a lack of capital but too few credible pathways through which it can be deployed and ultimately returned. The opportunity is therefore to build a stronger cycle of African capital: mobilising domestic savings, deploying them through suitable equity, credit and infrastructure investment structures and creating credible routes through which that capital can be returned and reinvested. International capital and development finance will remain essential, but increasingly as partners in mobilising and scaling African capital rather than as its substitute.
This is increasingly shaping investment across the continent. Large infrastructure and industrial projects still attract attention, but investors are more focused on whether opportunities have realistic demand, credible sponsors, clear revenue models and manageable execution risk. The Dangote Petroleum Refinery illustrates both the ambition and complexity of African-led industrial investment. Its scale is exceptional, but the wider lesson is relevant. Patient capital can support import substitution, local value addition and regional supply chains, provided that logistics, inputs, foreign-exchange exposure and offtake are addressed.
For domestic and international capital to move at scale, project preparation remains decisive across sectors. Clear procurement, suitable documentation and focused risk allocation can turn demand into financeable opportunities, whether in transport, digital infrastructure, healthcare, housing, water or power. Where these foundations are weak, unresolved land, permitting, tariff and contractual issues increase costs and delay investment. Development finance institutions remain important where their participation can reduce specific risks and mobilise domestic and private capital rather than displace it. The source and currency of that capital matter as much as its availability.
Financing conditions are particularly challenging where businesses and projects earn local-currency revenues but depend on foreign-currency funding. Exchange-rate volatility can undermine otherwise viable investments and reinforce the case for deeper local capital markets. Mobilising more institutional savings will require structures that meet investors’ return, duration and liquidity requirements, including private credit, infrastructure debt and other instruments capable of converting long-term savings into productive investment, as well as regulatory frameworks that allow long-term capital to move beyond government securities. Private credit can play an increasingly important role in closing this financing gap. African businesses and projects often require flexible, longer-dated capital that sits between traditional bank lending and equity, particularly where bank balance sheets, collateral requirements or regulatory constraints limit conventional lending. Private credit strategies can provide senior and subordinated debt, asset-backed financing and other tailored structures while allowing institutional investors to access contractual returns without assuming the full risk of equity. The opportunity is particularly compelling if more of this capital can be raised and deployed in local currency, reducing the mismatch between dollar-denominated funding and local-currency revenues. The distinction between private equity and private credit is also becoming less rigid, with sponsors and investors increasingly using hybrid capital structures tailored to the cash flows, growth profile and risk of individual businesses.
Regional integration can also enlarge the pool of opportunities into which African institutional capital can be deployed. The Lobito Corridor is significant not simply as a transport project but for its potential to support logistics, agriculture, mineral processing, manufacturing and local supply chains across Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Zambia. The strategic question is whether better connectivity can help retain more value within Africa rather than merely accelerate raw-material exports. Similar considerations apply to digital markets, where broadband connections must be matched by interoperable payments, predictable data rules and sufficient trust for services to move across borders.
The AfCFTA can help create the scale required to make more African businesses and projects attractive to institutional capital. Its promise will be realised not through trade policy alone but through more efficient customs, logistics, payments and common standards that allow manufacturers, retailers, services businesses and agribusinesses to reach larger regional markets. Kenya is one example of how an established financial and technology ecosystem; a regional corporate base and strong logistics links can support investment across several sectors. Its experience also shows that market demand and capable institutions must be matched by policy consistency and disciplined execution.
Investment is broadening beyond headline infrastructure. Demand-led opportunities in healthcare, consumer goods, financial services, logistics, business services and value-added agriculture are closely connected to urbanisation, rising consumption and gaps in essential services. Technology increasingly runs through these sectors, from payments and distribution platforms to healthcare delivery and supply-chain management. Investors are prioritising businesses with clear revenue models, capital efficiency and the ability to expand across markets without losing operational discipline.
The vehicles through which capital reaches these opportunities are also evolving. AVCA recorded USD 5.1 billion invested across 530 African deals in 2025, with deal volume increasing as aggregate value declined. This points to smaller, more selective transactions. Private debt deal volume rose by 57%, while financial services and technology remained important alongside logistics, healthcare, digital infrastructure and value-added manufacturing. AVCA also recorded 81 exits, the second-highest annual total on record. Mobilising capital is only one half of the equation. It must also be capable of being returned and recycled.
Trade sales continue to play a central role, while public and secondary markets are not consistently deep enough to absorb mature assets at scale. Proposals for new exit platforms, including a permanent US dollar-denominated listed vehicle for seasoned African assets, are therefore worth considering. The wider opportunity is to expand routes to liquidity, recycle capital and attract more long-term African and international investors. Any workable structure would need to reflect asset quality, scale, governance and market depth. Private credit adds another dimension to this cycle. Unlike equity, where returns often depend on achieving an exit, credit provides a contractual pathway to repayment, potentially making it particularly relevant for institutional investors seeking African exposure while equity liquidity remains constrained. Refinancing risk, enforcement, currency mismatches and the underlying borrower’s ability to generate cash nevertheless remain critical.
The market is becoming more selective and more focused on execution. Governments can support investment through credible pipelines, predictable enforcement and regulatory clarity. Investors need practical local knowledge, while businesses need to address governance, documentation and risk allocation before these become obstacles to a transaction.
Africa’s growing working-age population will continue to drive demand for housing, transport, connectivity, healthcare, food, financial services, manufacturing capacity and jobs. No single source of finance can meet that need. A continent that channels more of its own savings into productive growth, supported by international partners rather than dependent on them, will be more resilient in any global order. Mobilising growth begins with converting confidence in African projects, businesses and markets into capital that can be deployed, returned and reinvested closer to home.
Written by Michael Denenga, Partner and co-chair, Africa, Alliances and Networks & Mandisa Nduli, senior business development manager, Africa, Alliances and Networks from Webber Wentzel