Abu Dhabi-listed Invictus to invest $272m for expansion into North and East Africa

The company will seek acquisitions and joint ventures with local entities

Invictus Investment listed on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange Growth Market in June last year. Photo: ADX

Abu Dhabi-listed Invictus Investment said it will invest nearly Dh1 billion ($272.25 million) to fuel its expansion into North and East Africa as it aims to diversify its business further into agro-food trading and processing.

Invictus will expand its operations through acquisitions and joint ventures with “leading local entities” in the region, the company said in a bourse statement on Monday.

The planned inorganic expansion will see it significantly increase its presence in markets including Morocco, Algeria, Kenya, Tanzania and Mozambique.

“In an increasingly globalised world, there is an immense need to continue to connect, and deliver food to ensure safety and security of a nation and its people,” Amir Abdellatif, chief executive of the company, said.

“Our planned partnerships and acquisitions will allow us to expand across the value chain to also include finished products, such as flour mixes, pasta, noodles, poultry and animal feed, among others.”

Invictus established a fully-owned subsidiary, Invictus Trading, in Dubai in 2014. It currently operates in 70 countries.

The company, which started out trading wheat in the Middle East and North Africa region, has since diversified into grains, cotton, groundnuts, meat and other commodities, as well as finished goods.

It listed on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange Growth Market in June last year.

The company recently reported that it had exported more than 1 million metric tonnes of agro-commodities to Egypt so far this year.

In October last year, it partnered with Safeen Feeders, AD Ports Group’s feeder services company, to launch a new international dry bulk shipping service with an initial investment commitment of approximately $126 million by both parties.

Invictus said it is focused on building its presence by investing in the food processing space in Africa to further strengthen its trading business and build access to consumers in the region.

“Central to our ambition is ensuring we diversify across products and markets,” Mr Abdellatif said.

“In each of these markets, we have identified leaders who can help us elevate our offerings while setting us on a growth trajectory. Our investment interests further reiterate our commitment to Africa and the rest of the world.”